Federal immigration officers faced interference during an arrest operation in Minnesota after a viral video showed bystanders disrupting Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents as they attempted to take an alleged child sex offender into custody.
The video, posted to X on Sunday and viewed more than 750,000 times within hours, shows an ICE agent confronting individuals in St. Paul who he said were honking vehicle horns and obstructing officers during the operation.
“We’re here to arrest a child sex offender and you guys are out here honking,” the agent says in the video.
Someone off-camera responds, “No, we’re press. We’re not honking.”
The agent then points toward a nearby vehicle and says, “That vehicle right there is honking and impeding our investigations while we’re trying to arrest a child sex offender. That’s who you guys are protecting. Insane.”
Another segment shows the agent standing in the snow beside a vehicle repeatedly sounding its horn. “Trust me, I understand,” the agent says to the driver before the horn blares again.
In a separate moment, the agent is seen speaking with occupants of another vehicle who appear to question the legitimacy of the arrest and attempt to direct him away from the scene. A woman standing behind the agent’s vehicle can be heard saying, “Just go. They’re lying. Don’t listen to them,” while waving the car forward.
The incident drew reactions from senior officials. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin praised officers involved, writing on X, “God bless the men & women of [ICE] and [Customs and Border Protection] who risk their lives to arrest these criminals.” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted, “God Bless ICE,” a message later reposted by the official White House account. Elon Musk reacted simply, writing, “Crazy.”
The confrontation comes amid heightened tensions in the Twin Cities following the fatal Jan. 7 shooting of activist Renee Nicole Good by an ICE officer during a separate enforcement operation. Since then, federal agents have reported being followed, harassed, and obstructed while carrying out arrests, with some incidents escalating to pepper spray and tear gas deployment.
A senior US official has confirmed that the Trump administration is preparing roughly 1,500 troops for possible deployment to Minnesota as unrest continues.
