Minnesota's Operation Metro Surge has scared crime victims from court, county attorney says

Kyeland Jackson, Star Tribune on Oct 30, 2026

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MINNEAPOLIS — Operation Metro Surge continues to scare crime victims from attending court, according to a new report by the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, forcing prosecutors to dismiss some cases and allowing some defendants to evade accountability.

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty’s office publicized the report Thursday after presenting it to a state council collecting a public record of the effects the operation left on Minnesota. According to the report, more than 35 crime victims in HCAO cases said they feel unsafe traveling to county courthouses.

Some asked to attend court virtually. Others did not appear at all. But the absences have forced county prosecutors to dismiss cases, and Moriarty’s report suggests that the operation continues to undermine public safety.

“Some victims were so fearful that they left Minnesota and, in some cases, the United States entirely. ... In one case, a crime victim was threatened by the defendant from abroad after ICE deported the defendant,” the HCAO report said. “By disrupting criminal prosecutions, these immigration enforcement practices deny justice to crime victims, allow defendants to evade accountability, and undermine public safety.”

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have arrested hundreds of people in Minnesota since March, according to a Minnesota Star Tribune analysis of federal records. More than 30 defendants in HCAO prosecutions were among those detained, the report says. After state court orders to return 20 defendants to Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office custody, federal agents only returned eight of them.

The attorney’s office presented the report and its findings on Oct. 20 to the Minnesota Truth Council, a body convened by Gov. Tim Walz to collect a public record of how Operation Metro Surge and the parallel Operation PARRIS affected Minnesota.

Thursday’s report cites several ICE incidents that scared victims from traveling to court, including the January killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Among the incidents that the HCAO cited:

Although Operation Metro Surge ended in February, Moriarty’s office says it is still investigating more than 30 federal actions during the period. That includes an investigation into actions at Roosevelt High School, where an educator claims federal agents tackled him, and an investigation into former Border Control Commander Greg Bovino, who was recorded tossing a smoke canister into Mueller Park.

As those investigations continue, members of the Minnesota Truth Council aim to publish a preliminary report of what it’s learned after 14 meetings. A final report, delivered by Gov. Walz and Minnesota’s congressional delegation, is expected to take place on Dec. 1.