US immigration officer fatally shoots woman in Minneapolis

A US immigration officer fatally shot a 37-year-old woman in the city of Minneapolis, sparking a war of words as local officials rejected the Trump administration’s explanation that it was self-defense.

The Department of Homeland Security said the woman, Renee Nicole Good, was a “violent rioter” who tried to overwhelm Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

But Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said, “This was an agent using reckless force that resulted in someone’s death,” and told ICE officials to leave the city with profane words.

Hundreds of ICE agents were sent to the city as part of the White House’s nationwide crackdown on illegal immigration.

Videos shared by viewers on social media show the moment of the shooting, which occurred around 10:25 local time on Wednesday morning.

From various vantage points, a burgundy SUV can be seen blocking a residential street in Minneapolis.

A crowd of people lined up on the sidewalk, appearing to be protesting.

Law enforcement vehicles appear nearby. Immigration officers approach the vehicle parked on the street, exit the truck, and tell the woman behind the wheel to get out of the SUV. One of the agents pulls the driver’s side door handle.

Another agent is positioned near the front of the vehicle.

Based on videos quickly reviewed by the BBC, it was not clear exactly how close the agent was standing or whether the vehicle hit him.

This agent opens fire as the maroon SUV tries to drive away.

Three explosions were heard and the vehicle was seen losing control and crashing into a car parked nearby.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said an ICE officer was “brutally” run over. “It’s hard to believe he’s alive, but he’s currently recovering in the hospital,” he wrote.

The Republican president also accused the “Radical Left” of “threatening, attacking, and targeting law enforcement and our ICE Agents on a daily basis.”

Minneapolis police Chief Brian O’Hara said Good was in his vehicle and blocked the road on Portland Boulevard. A federal law enforcement officer then approached him on foot and “began to drive away.”

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the woman “stalked and obstructed” officers throughout the day and attempted to “use a gun on his vehicle” in an attempt to run over the officer in an act of “domestic terrorism.”

Noem said the federal agent fired “defensive shots” and was himself injured before being treated and released from a local hospital.

He said the same agent was hit by a car while on duty in June.

Noem added that ICE operations in the city will continue in the city and that the FBI will investigate Wednesday’s incident.

But the Minneapolis City Council said Good was merely “taking care of his neighbors” when he was shot and killed.

Emily Heller told CNN that while she was at home, she saw ICE agents arguing with protesters outside.

He said he heard agents yelling at a woman driving an SUV, then an agent tried to open her car door and the driver shifted into reverse and started to drive away.

“An ICE agent stepped in front of his vehicle and shouted, ‘Stop!’ he said. “Then – I mean, he was already moving – and then he shot point blank into his face through his windshield,” Heller told US television.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz also withdrew federal statements regarding the incident.

“Don’t believe this propaganda machine,” Walz wrote in response to a Department of Homeland Security post about the shooting.

“The state will ensure a full, fair and prompt investigation to ensure accountability and justice.”

Top Democrats such as former Vice President Kamala Harris and House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries also made statements. Harris called the Trump administration’s version of events “staggering.”

Protests and arrests took place in various parts of the city, as some angry Minneapolis residents condemned the attack and called for ICE to leave.

The main gathering was near the scene of the shooting, just a mile or so from where George Floyd was killed by a city police officer, sparking anti-racism protests around the world.

Protests were also held in other cities across the US, including New Orleans, Miami, Seattle and New York City.

Minneapolis Public Schools announced classes were canceled for the remainder of the week “due to safety concerns.”

This comes after federal agents reportedly made arrests outside a high school on Wednesday.

The Trump administration has sent an additional 2,000 federal agents to the Minneapolis area in recent weeks in response to allegations of welfare fraud in the state.

The mayor said at the press conference that ICE has not made the city safer.

“They are tearing families apart, sowing chaos on our streets,” he said.

The deployment, which began Sunday, is one of the largest concentrations of Department of Homeland Security personnel in a U.S. city in recent years.

This follows an immigration enforcement campaign by ICE in Minneapolis late last year targeting individuals with deportation orders, including members of the city’s Somali community.

This community has been frequently criticized by Trump, who called them “trash.”

“I don’t want them in our country. I’ll be honest with you,” the president said. “There’s a reason their country isn’t good. Their country stinks.”

Trump later doubled down on his remarks after a conservative online creator accused nurseries run by Somali immigrants of mass fraud in a YouTube video.

In response, Trump donated federal child care funds to the state of Minnesota.

The Trump administration has sent ICE agents to other cities as well; it’s all part of a widespread crackdown on what he says is illegal immigration in the United States.