An immigration officer shot and killed a woman during an operation Wednesday in Minneapolis in what Donald Trump said amounted to “self-defense,” while local politicians dispute that version of the facts based on video.
• Also read: PICTURES | Woman killed by ICE in Minneapolis as tension rises between protesters and agents
Judging by images on social media, several thousand people gathered at the scene in the evening to remember the victim.
“No matter what this man did, there is no reason he deserves to die,” one told local station WCCO.
Federal Immigration Police (ICE) has been conducting an extensive series of operations in the large northern city and its suburbs since Tuesday, involving about 2,000 officers.
During one of the operations, “insurgents began to block agents,” the US Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.
One of the protesters then “turned her vehicle into a weapon in an attempt to overthrow our police with the intent to kill them – an act of domestic terrorism,” the text continued.
“The ICE agent, fearing for his life, the lives of his colleagues, and the safety of the public, fired in self-defense,” the agency added.
The driver of the car died after the shooting.
In a video circulating on social media that has not been verified by AFP, law enforcement officers are seen heading towards the SUV along a snowy road.
The car then begins to maneuver as shots are fired. The car then collided with another car parked a few meters away.
In another video taken from a different angle, we see a police officer trying to open the driver's side door. The car reverses and then moves forward again. Another police officer in front of the car opened fire. Witnesses scream “murderers!”
Getty Images via AFP
“Propaganda machine”
During a press briefing, Democratic Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, based in part on the images, called the immigration police story “nonsense,” arguing that the driver never posed a danger to anyone.
“We've been afraid of this moment from the very beginning” of ICE's presence in the city, he continued, adding that he had a “message” for them: “Get the hell out of Minneapolis!”
“I saw the video. Don't believe the propaganda machine,” Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, Kamala Harris' former 2024 presidential candidate, also said.
“The state (of Minnesota) will ensure that there is a full, fair and timely investigation to ensure accountability is established and justice is served,” he continued.
Getty Images via AFP
The FBI is in charge of the investigation. A local newspaper named the victim as Renee Nicole Goode, 37.
“This situation is being reviewed to its fullest extent, but the reason these incidents are occurring is because the radical left threatens, attacks and harasses law enforcement and immigration officials on a daily basis,” Donald Trump justified on his social network “Pravda.”
At a press conference Wednesday evening, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the victim had been “following and obstructing police throughout the day.”
Getty Images via AFP
She added that the immigration officer who opened fire was hit by a car during a previous operation in June “and dragged several meters.”
Donald Trump has made the fight against illegal immigration one of the main directions of his domestic policy.
ICE launched a massive recruiting campaign last summer, bringing in about 10,000 new agents, raising concerns about their lack of training.
Since Donald Trump returned to the White House, approximately $70 million has been spent by the federal agency under the firearms, ammunition and accessories category.
Several times in recent months, people have died, often accidentally, while trying to escape control.
