(MINNEAPOLIS) — The Department of Homeland Security said a federal law enforcement officer shot a person in Minneapolis on Wednesday evening, saying the latter fled a traffic stop and then — along with two other people — began attacking the officer.
“Fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired defensive shots to defend his life,” DHS said in a statement on social media. “The initial subject was hit in the leg.”
Both the officer and the person who was shot were taken to the hospital, DHS said.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the person shot was an “adult male,” and that his injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.
DHS said federal law enforcement officers were conducting a “targeted traffic stop” Wednesday evening at 6:50 p.m. local time. The DHS statement identified the person being stopped as “an illegal alien from Venezuela.”
DHS said the person drove away in his car, crashed into a parked vehicle and then fled on foot.
When a pursuing officer caught up to the person, “the subject began to resist and violently assault the officer,” DHS said in the statement.
“While the subject and law enforcement were in a struggle on the ground, two subjects came out of a nearby apartment and also attacked the law enforcement officer with a snow shovel and broom handle,” the statement said.
The statement added, “As the officer was being ambushed and attacked by the two individuals, the original subject got loose and began striking the officer with a shovel or broom stick.”
After the officer fired, the three people ran back into the apartment and barricaded themselves inside, DHS claimed in the statement.
It’s unclear from the statement when and how an arrest was made, but DHS said both of the two people, who were not shot, it alleges attacked the officer were taken into custody.
A crowd later gathered at the scene of the second shooting. O’Hara said the crowd amounted to an “unlawful assembly” and accused some people of throwing fireworks and rocks at officers.
“People need to leave. This is already a very tense situation and we do not need this to escalate any further,” O’Hara told reporters at a news conference Wednesday night.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the situation was “not sustainable” and urged residents to protest peacefully.
“There’s still a lot that we don’t know at this time,” Frey said. “But what I can tell you for certain is that this is not sustainable. This is an impossible situation that our city is being put in.”
ICE and Border Patrol officers are “creating chaos,” in the city, Frey said, adding, “I’ve seen conduct from ICE that is disgusting and is intolerable. If it were your city, it would be unacceptable there too.”
ICE officials have disputed those claims, saying federal officers are seeking only those who’ve broken the law. “If Frey truly cared about safety in his community, he would work with ICE to get the worst of the WORST out of Minnesota,” the agency said on Wednesday.
Customs and Border Patrol said on Monday that additional officers were “are on their way to restore order and we welcome cooperation from state and local law enforcement” in Minneapolis. The agency, which sits under the DHS, described Frey’s leadership as “weak,” accusing his administration of encouraging “lawlessness.”
“We are not going to let our officers be attacked in an aggressive manner and sit idly by,” Gregory K. Bovino, a senior Border Patrol official, said on Wednesday. “In addition to the most important mission of enforcing Title 8 Immigration laws, we will also arrest those who attack and assault our agents. You will go to jail.”
Frey said protesters should avoid confrontations with federal officers. “And for anyone that is taking the bait tonight — stop,” he said. “That is not helpful. Go home. We cannot counter Donald Trump’s chaos with our own brand of chaos.”
Frey said there were 600 Minneapolis Police Department officers working to “keep our streets safe” as the protests continued. About 3,000 federal officers had been dispatched to Minnesota, he said.
In a rare primetime address, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz Wednesday called on President Trump and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem to “end this occupation” in Minnesota,
“Donald Trump wants this chaos. He wants confusion, and yes, he wants more violence on our streets. We cannot give him what he wants,” Walz said. “We can, we must protest loudly, urgently, but also peacefully. Indeed, as hard as we will fight in the courts and at the ballot box, we cannot and will not let violence prevail.”
Noem had said on Tuesday that the ICE officers were on the scene for an operation that was “rapidly removing the criminal illegal aliens who have found sanctuary in Tim Walz’s Minnesota.”
“The men and women of DHS law enforcement are working day and night to arrest and deport sickos, dirtbags, and fraudsters from across the state,” she added.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, meanwhile, accused both Frey and Walz of inciting unrest.
“Minnesota insurrection is a direct result of a FAILED governor and a TERRIBLE mayor encouraging violence against law enforcement,” Blanche said on Wednesday on social media. “It’s disgusting.”
He added, “Walz and Frey — I’m focused on stopping YOU from your terrorism by whatever means necessary. This is not a threat. It’s a promise.”
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