Federal prosecutors on Tuesday announced the indictment of 15 Minnesota activists accused of conspiring to obstruct immigration enforcement operations during Operation Metro Surge, a controversial federal crackdown that brought thousands of immigration agents into the state earlier this year.
U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen said a grand jury charged the defendants with conspiracy to impede or injure federal officers and other offenses tied to what prosecutors described as efforts to disrupt federal immigration enforcement activities.
"These defendants have been charged not for what they said, but for what they did," Rosen told reporters, including local MPR News. "They all joined an agreement, a conspiracy, to interfere with lawful immigration enforcement operations."
According to the indictment, the defendants allegedly used Signal chat groups and rapid-response networks to track federal agents, organized blockades around the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, conducted surveillance of immigration enforcement activity, raised money for operations and coordinated efforts to impede arrests and deportations.
Prosecutors said the defendants were affiliated with Direct Action Minnesota, an activist group they described as part of the broader antifa movement. The 94-page indictment alleges the group's goal was to "forcibly challenge, block or stop immigration raids, detentions and deportations."
The charges stem from Operation Metro Surge, a large-scale immigration enforcement campaign that brought as many as 3,000 federal agents into Minnesota between December and February. The operation generated national controversy after several high-profile cases. including those of Renee Good, fatally shot by an ICE agent during an enforcement action, and Alex Pretti.
Federal authorities have also faced criticism after charges were dismissed against two Venezuelan nationals accused of assaulting an ICE officer during the January arrest operation. Video evidence later contradicted portions of the government's account, prompting an investigation into whether federal agents gave false testimony under oath.
The Justice Department has previously charged dozens of people in connection with protests against Metro Surge, but many cases have since been dismissed, dropped through non-prosecution agreements or challenged in court. In April, a federal magistrate judge described one charging document filed during the operation as a "false affidavit."
Rosen rejected suggestions that the latest case targets political speech, arguing that the indictment concerns conduct rather than ideology. "Political violence is a national scourge in our times," he said. "The conspiracy was not to interfere by their voice, but to do it by force."
