A 37-year-old man was shot and killed Saturday morning in Minneapolis -- the second shooting of a U.S. citizen this month by federal agents in the city.
The shooting of Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse, ratcheted up tensions, as protesters clashed in the streets with law enforcement in the aftermath of the shooting.
The incident followed the fatal shooting of Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother, on Jan. 7.
Family disputes DHS' explanation for detention of US citizen in St. Paul
Chongly Scott Thao, 56, was resting at his house in St. Paul on Sunday when federal agents forcibly entered, ordering him and his daughter-in-law to put their hands up, according to Thao's sister-in-law, Louansee Moua.
The agents pointed their guns at Thao's daughter-in-law and ignored the residents when they offered to produce an ID for Thao, according to Moua, who said Thao is a U.S. citizen of Laotian Hmong descent.
Instead, Moua said, the agents handcuffed Thao and brought him outside in the 10-degree weather, wearing only a pair of shoes, underwear and a blanket belonging to his 5-year-old grandson, who was crying inside.
A man, whose family requested a Hmong interpreter, is detained after ICE agents and other law enforcement officers conducted an immigration raid at his home, days after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good, in St. Paul, Minn., Jan. 18, 2026.
Leah Millis/Reuters
They took him and drove him around for an hour before dropping him back off, Moua said.
On Monday, Homeland Security said in an online statement that agents were at the house in search of two sex offenders with removal orders from a judge. DHS claimed in their statement that Thao lived at the house with these men.
But Thao's family said this is not true. Moua told ABC News that her brother-in-law has lived there for two years with only his son, daughter-in-law and 5-year-old grandson.
When asked for clarification regarding the family's insistence that the two sex offenders being sought by the DHS agents did not live at that house, DHS sent ABC News a statement containing the names of the men the department said the agents were looking for: Lue Moua and Kongmeng Vang.
Thao's sister-in-law said the family does not know these men and that they do not live there.
-ABC News' Christopher Looft
Jan 19, 2026, 2:37 PM EST
DOJ appealing order restricting ICE response
The Trump administration is appealing a judge's decision that temporarily bars federal immigration agents from arresting lawful protesters and observers documenting immigration enforcement operations in Minnesota.
The Department of Justice filed a notice of appeal to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday.
Law enforcement detain a man outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building during a protest, Jan. 17, 2026, in Minneapolis.
Yuki Iwamura/AP
-ABC News' Armando Garcia
Jan 19, 2026, 1:22 PM EST
Justice Department investigating apparent St. Paul church disruption
Attorney General Pam Bondi and other top administration officials said that the Justice Department is investigating an apparent disruption that occurred at a church in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Sunday as a potential violation of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act.
In addition to protecting clinic entrances, the FACE Act also bars interfering with the exercise of religious freedom at a place of religious worship.
A group of protesters interrupts services at the Cities Church in St. Paul by chanting “ICE out” and “Justice for Renee Good," Jan. 18, 2026.
Speak Mpls via AP
The disruptive incident occurred at the Cities Church in St. Paul and was captured by former CNN anchor Don Lemon, who posted it to his YouTube page.
"I just spoke to the Pastor in Minnesota whose church was targeted," Bondi said in a post on social media. "Attacks against law enforcement and the intimidation of Christians are being met with the full force of federal law."
Protesters accused one of the church's pastors of leading the ICE field office in St. Paul and spoke out against ICE tactics during the protest.
St. Paul Police said officers responded to Cities Church following reports of "approximately 30 to 40 protesters who interrupted church services." The protesters had moved outside the church by the time police arrived and officers "continued to monitor the protest," the department said.
A group of protesters interrupt services at the Cities Church in St. Paul by chanting “ICE out” and “Justice for Renee Good," Jan. 18, 2026.
Speak Mpls via AP
Harmeet Dhillon, head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, said in an earlier post, "The @CivilRights is investigating the potential violations of the federal FACE Act by these people desecrating a house of worship and interfering with Christian worshippers."
"A house of worship is not a public forum for your protest! It is a space protected from exactly such acts by federal criminal and civil laws! Nor does the First Amendment protect your pseudo journalism of disrupting a prayer service. You are on notice!" Dhillon said in another social media post in an apparent reference to Lemon.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted as well, stating, "President Trump will not tolerate the intimidation and harassment of Christians in their sacred places of worship. The Department of Justice has launched a full investigation into the despicable incident that took place earlier today at a church in Minnesota."
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement put the blame on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, saying on social media that they "are responsible for whipping these mobs into a frenzy and then allowing them to run rampant."
On Monday, a spokesperson for Walz said in a statement that the governor "has repeatedly and unequivocally urged protesters to do so peacefully. While people have a right to speak out, he in no way supports interrupting a place of worship."
Walz said in an address last week, "We can, we must, protest loudly, forcefully, but also peacefully." Frey, last week, also encouraged protesters to remain peaceful, stating, "We cannot counter Donald Trump's chaos with our own brand of chaos."
