DOJ opens criminal probe targeting Minnesota governor, Minneapolis mayor over ICE operations

The Justice Department has opened a criminal probe into Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey — both Democrats — marking a striking escalation in an already volatile standoff between the state and federal government.

The investigation centers on whether Walz and Frey violated federal law by allegedly conspiring to impede immigration agents during the Trump administration’s sweeping enforcement operation in the Twin Cities, sources told CBS News.

“Two days ago it was Elissa Slotkin. Last week it was Jerome Powell. Before that, Mark Kelly. Weaponizing the justice system and threatening political opponents is a dangerous, authoritarian tactic,” Walz said in a statement following reports of the probe. “The only person not being investigated for the shooting of Renee Good is the federal agent who shot her.”

The move comes after weeks of mass Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deployments in Minneapolis and St. Paul, public protests following deadly encounters involving federal agents and repeated threats from the Trump administration to further escalate its response.

At issue is 18 U.S.C. § 372, a rarely used statute that criminalizes conspiracies to prevent federal officers from performing their duties through force, intimidation or threats. In plain terms, the administration is advancing the theory that criticism and opposition by elected officials may have crossed the line from protected political speech into criminal obstruction.

The reported probe lands amid extraordinary tensions.

Since December, the Department of Homeland Security has flooded Minneapolis with thousands of federal agents under what it calls Operation Metro Surge. The deployment was followed by the Jan. 7 killing of Renee Nicole Good during an ICE operation and a second shooting days later.

The incidents ignited protests across the Twin Cities and prompted Walz to activate the National Guard to prevent further unrest.

Earlier this week, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, joined by Minneapolis and St. Paul, sued DHS and ICE, alleging the surge violates the Constitution, unlawfully commandeers state resources and targets Minnesota for political retaliation. 

“This operation was never about safety, it’s a targeted political operation and Minnesota won’t stand for it,” Walz said after the lawsuit against ICE and DHS was filed.

Frey has argued that the overwhelming federal presence has made Minneapolis less safe by diverting local law enforcement resources and inflaming tensions.

“No matter what led up to this incident, the situation we are seeing in our city is not sustainable,” Frey said after the second shooting involving an ICE agent. “America, this is not the path we can be on.”

The Trump administration has responded with increasingly incendiary rhetoric.

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has accused Walz and Frey of encouraging criminal obstruction.

“Mayor Frey and Governor Walz have to get their city under control,” Noem said in a DHS press release. “They are encouraging impeding and assault against our law enforcement which is a federal crime, a felony.”

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche went further, framing the conflict in explicitly punitive terms.

“Walz and Frey — I’m focused on stopping YOU from your terrorism by whatever means necessary,” Blanche wrote. “This is not a threat. It’s a promise.”

The Justice Department has yet not publicly confirmed the probe and no charges have been filed against Walz or Frey. 

But even at the investigatory stage, the reported probe signals a significant shift — from a policy dispute over immigration enforcement to the potential use of federal prosecutorial power against elected officials who refuse to comply.