Minneapolis agitators vandalized and spray-painted a threatening anti-U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) message onto a vehicle believed to be used by federal officers during unrest on Wednesday, video footage from the scene shows.
The incident came after the Department of Homeland Security said an ICE agent shot an illegal immigrant from Venezuela in the leg after an alleged shovel attack during an ambush.
The video shows a vandal spraying “Only good agent is a dead one” in red paint across the side of the vehicle. It does not appear anyone was inside the vehicle at the time.
A separate “f— ICE” message was also spray-painted on the vehicle. Its driver’s window appeared smashed, with the vehicle’s exterior showing signs of heavy damage, including torn panels and loose materials hanging from the body.
“This is what you get when you come to Minneapolis,” one man can be heard saying as the vandal defaces the vehicle. At least two other vehicles were damaged.
Scores of demonstrators gathered at the scene, shouting expletives at federal agents and demanding they leave the city, the Minnesota Reformer reported. As tensions escalated, federal agents deployed tear gas and flash bangs to disperse the crowd, while some protesters shot fireworks and other projectiles toward law enforcement during the chaos.
ICE AGENT STRUCK BY RENEE GOOD’S VEHICLE SUFFERED INTERNAL BLEEDING TO TORSO, DHS SAYS
According to the outlet, at least two people were detained after fireworks were thrown. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the crowd crossed the line into an unlawful assembly, prompting assistance from the Minnesota State Patrol and the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office. Mayor Jacob Frey renewed his call for residents to remain peaceful and not “take the bait.”
During the earlier shooting incident, DHS said the agent fired after fearing for his life during a physical struggle in which the suspect, an illegal alien from Venezuela, resisted arrest and assaulted the officer.
DHS said federal officers were conducting a targeted traffic stop in Minneapolis around 6:50 p.m. when the suspect fled in his vehicle, crashed into a parked car and ran on foot. An officer caught up to the suspect, who continued to resist arrest and assault the officer, according to DHS.
During the struggle, two additional individuals allegedly joined in, attacking the officer with a snow shovel and broom handle. DHS said the agent, fearing for his life while being attacked by three people, fired a defensive shot, striking the suspect in the leg.
All three individuals fled into an apartment and barricaded themselves before being taken into custody. The officer and the suspect were transported to the hospital, DHS said.
Authorities said the man’s injuries were not life-threatening.
Anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis have escalated in recent days following the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good last week during a federal immigration enforcement operation.
