Aleesa

If I had a nickel for every time I saw a photo of a man posing in front of Quality Learning Center on a dating app, I’d have two nickels. Which feels like a lot.

Parents of Annunciation victim look to change hearts and minds across party lines Harper Moyski was one of two children shot and killed in the mass shooting. Her parents have met individually with more than a dozen lawmakers, from both parties, for conversations in their living roo...

Their daughter died in the Annunciation mass shooting. Since then they’ve met with 19 lawmakers in their living room, a majority Republicans, to have conversations about gun violence.
Take a read/listen to the Moyski’s story.

www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

There it is: Noem out, Mullin in

Some Minneapolis council members critical of MPD reaction or inaction to ICE agents Police chief Brian O’Hara said he’s mostly pleased with how the department performed during the months-long ICE enforcement surge. However, some council members pushed back on that assessment.

Minneapolis Council Member Aisha Chughtai to Chief Brian O'Hara: “You show up to the scene and you see federal agents pointing their weapons at people, and you don’t feel a duty to protect the residents of this community and instead choose to leave the scene?” (1) www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

Going to spare you the crappy iPhone moon photo, but everyone should go outside. It’s huge!!

Two federal judges rebuke Minnesota U.S. Attorney after ICE fails to follow court orders A federal judge in St. Paul ordered Minnesota’s U.S. attorney to court over DHS’s failure to return property to unlawfully detained immigrants, as another judge rebuked his office.

Minnesota U.S. Attorney Dan Rosen is in St. Paul federal court this morning along with his acting civil division chief David Fuller. Judge Jeffery Bryan ordered them to appear & explain why they shouldn’t be held in civil or criminal contempt... www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

A Minneapolis man ordered a hydration vest from Amazon. Instead, a loaded handgun was delivered. Story from @estelletw.bsky.social

www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

Judge rules feds violated speedy trial rights, dismisses firearms indictment A judge dismissed the latest charges against a Minneapolis man with a long criminal history because federal prosecutors missed deadlines.

A judge dismissed the latest charges against a Minneapolis man with a long criminal history because federal prosecutors missed deadlines.

www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

4. During Operation Metro Surge, approximately 3,000 additional ERO officers and HSI agents were detailed to the St. Paul Field Office. These details have come at different times and for varying lengths of time. Typically, the ERO St. Paul Office is staffed with approximately 190 officers covering the five states of Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Iowa. In the Twin Cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis, ERO has approximately 80 officers. 5. As of February 23, 2026, there are approximately 270 ERO officers and 700 HSI agents on detail to the St. Paul Field Office. 6. After February 25, 2026, approximately 107 ERO officers will remain on detail to the St. Paul Field Office. HSI anticipates that there will be approximately 300 agents on detail to the St. Paul Field Office by March 2026.

7. On February 3, 2026, the day I began my duties as the LFC, approximately 1029 CBP employees (including CBP officers, Border Patrol agents, Air and Marine Operations (AMO) personnel and support staff) were assigned to Operation Metro Surge. This number does not include CBP employees assigned to other responsibilities within the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, such as CBP officers assigned to ports of entry. 8. On February 4, 2026, CBP demobilized approximately 680 CBP officers and Border Patrol agents assigned to Operation Metro Surge, leaving approximately 349 CBP officers, Border Patrol agents, AMO personnel and support staff to assist the operation. CBP continued to draw down personnel during the next two and a half weeks. 9. On February 12, 2026, CBP demobilized approximately 200 CBP officers, Border Patrol agents, and AMO personnel leaving approximately 149 CBP officers, Border Patrol agents, AMO personnel and support staff to assist the operation. Four days later, CBP demobilized approximately 82 additional employees, which included CBP officers, Border Patrol agents, AMO personnel and support staff, leaving approximately 67 CBP officers, Border Patrol agents, AMO personnel and support staff to assist the operation. 10. CBP will demobilize the remaining 67 CBP employees assigned to Operation Metro Surge by February 23, 2026.

New sworn declarations from DHS officials are giving us new numbers in the amount of agents in Minnesota.
-When you combine ICE + CBP = at least 4,000 agents were here
-ICE: As of Monday, 970 agents remained. As of today, 400 will remain
-CBP: As of Monday, the remaining 67 officers left the state

At that very council meeting, the old flag was already in the chambers. I went to a random council meeting last year, old flag there as well.

The city of Champlin has voted to fly the old Minnesota state flag.

Correction! The two people who were shot were age 14 and 23!

CORRECTION!! The people who died were ages 14 and 23.

MPD Chief Brian O’Hara on the Minneapolis and Brooklyn Center shooting:
-Man was released from jail today
-Shot and killed two of his cousins, age 12 and 14 in Mpls
-7,8,9 and 10 year old and their grandma were also home
-The suspect left the scene and then was shot by police in Brooklyn Center

The lawsuit was filed back in September by the DOJ against the state of MN, Minneapolis, St. Paul, AG, Hennepin County and Hennepin County Sheriff. This is Hennepin County and Sheriff Witt's response in support of a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

New filing from Henn. County in DOJ sanctuary city lawsuit.
"The federal government’s position is akin to storming out of a café because the owner refused to share the wifi password, punching a bystander on the sidewalk, and blaming the café owner for the consequences. It is beyond the pale."

ICE drawdown? Indications point to steady enforcement activity outside the Twin Cities Some people who observe ICE activity are skeptical about a large scale drawdown of agents in the state. There are indications that activity has decreased in the Twin Cities, but has continued outside ...

Two female ICE agents popped the hood of their car and knocked on the door of a mechanic born in Mexico. He went out to help.

“A bunch of agents jump out and tackle him, essentially restraining him, and take him away...His six kids are now without their father." www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

Minnesota man faces deportation to Laos for a crime he committed more than 30 years ago At “Ricky” Chandee pled guilty to assault when he was 18 and served a prison sentence in the early 1990s. Since his release, he has worked for the city of Minneapolis for nearly 30 years. His family s...

Ricky Chandee was labeled the “worst of the worst” for an assault conviction from 1992, when he was 18.

His lawyer said his case raises an important question: “At what point are we supposed to continue to say that if you've committed a crime, you're always a criminal?”

bit.ly/4qLK9Et

The FBI formally notified the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) on Feb. 13 that it will not provide the BCA with access to any information or evidence that it has collected in the Jan. 24 shooting death of Alex Pretti.

content.dps.mn.gov/news/bca/sta...

Rural Minnesotans of color skipping medical care out of fear of ICE Medical providers are increasingly concerned that some of their rural patients who need to drive long distances to see specialists are missing appointments because they fear being picked up by federal...

One leukemia patient at Children’s who lived an hour from Minneapolis stopped coming in for treatment due to ICE presence. When she finally did, she was in complete liver failure.
www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

Additionally:
-$15.7 million in monthly rental assistance needs
-$2.4 million to meet monthly food needs
-8,700 new kids now need mental health services

The economic impact of ICE in Minneapolis
-$203 million total economic loss January alone
-$47m per month of income loss to families afraid to go to work
-$81m loss to small biz
-$4.7b in hotel cancelations
-$37.9m loss construction evaluation

Feds investigating whether 2 ICE officers lied about the shooting of a Venezuelan man in Minneapolis Federal authorities have opened a criminal probe into whether two immigration officers lied under oath about a shooting in Minneapolis last month, as all charges were dropped against two Venezuelan me...

From the Associated Press: ICE has opened a joint probe with the Justice Department after video evidence revealed “sworn testimony provided by two separate officers appears to have made untruthful statements” about the shooting of one of the Venezuelan men.

apnews.com/article/immi...

Charges dropped against men accused of attacking ICE officer In their motion to dismiss the charges of assaulting a federal officer, prosecutors write that newly discovered evidence is "materially inconsistent with the allegations."

The second ICE shooting in Minneapolis happened on the north side. DHS said two men attacked an agent with a shovel and a broom. Charges have been dropped for both men. Prosecutors write that newly discovered evidence is "materially inconsistent with the allegations."
www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

And I’d be remiss not to mention that the woman in the robe is MPR journalist @samstroozas.bsky.social who lives near the scene.

The person photographed here who is in their bathrobe filming armed, masked federal agents in St. Paul is MPR News journalist @samstroozas.bsky.social @mprnews.org . She is an incredible journalist and person. We do not deserve her.

Don Lemon hires former Minnesota federal prosecutor in church protest case Journalist Don Lemon has hired Joe Thompson, previously lead prosecutor in the Feeding Our Future case. Lemon is charged in connection with a demonstration at a St. Paul church he covered in January.

Quite the twist here.

Two former assistant U.S. attorneys who prosecuted fraud cases in Minnesota are now defending Don Lemon and Georgia Fort.

www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

After arrest, teen refugee held overnight in hotel room by ICE agents A girl who entered the United States as a refugee alleges that immigration authorities separated her from her family and detained her overnight in a hotel, where she was forced to share a room with fe...

An agent told the teen to call her family and ask them to pick her up. But the agent said that if they came, ICE would send the entire family to Texas. The girl writes “My family decided not to come and pick me up as a result of this threat. ICE decided to take me to a hotel.”

tinyurl.com/3nkf9sbd

Walz expects big drawdown in federal agents within days At an event Tuesday to highlight business hardships, Walz said he believes a bigger drawdown could be just days away. He said it shouldn't be weeks or months. "We're very much in a trust but verify mo...

Walz: It would be my hope that before Friday Homan goes out and says this thing is done. That is my expectation.

www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

‘He’s not the same’: Father of Liam Conejo Ramos says 5-year-old continues to suffer Some people thought they say the 5-year-old during the Super Bowl halftime show. But Liam is still in hiding with his family, after he and his father were detained and then released from a Texas deten...

MPR News spoke to Liam Conejo Ramos’ father.

“My family, my children, are very scared of what might happen to us and of what we're going through now. We’re still hiding. And we’re still getting bad news.”

www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...