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ABC News

Minneapolis live updates: ICE arrest powers expanded, memo says

PHOTO: Protesters stand behind fences as an officer of the Sheriff's office in riot gear looks on a road leading to the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, January 30, 2026.
4:08
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images
Journalist Don Lemon released after arrest over Minnesota church protest
By Kevin Shalvey, Meredith Deliso, Nadine El-Bawab, Ivan Pereira, Jon Haworth
Last Updated: January 31, 2026, 10:24 PM

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.

Key Headlines

  • Trump says federal agents won’t be deployed for riot control unless asked; will still protect federal property
  • Judge orders 5-year-old, father released
  • ICE expands administrative arrest powers, memo says
  • Walz responds to news that FBI is investigating Pretti shooting
  • Trump calls Pretti 'insurrectionist' after earlier video surfaces
  • DOJ launches investigation into Pretti killing: Blanche
Here's how the news is developing.

Jan 31, 2026 10:24 PM

Trump says federal agents won’t be deployed for riot control unless asked; will still protect federal property

President Donald Trump says federal law enforcement officers will not help quell protests unless asked by local leaders while instructing DHS officials to still protect federal property.

“I have instructed Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, that under no circumstances are we going to participate in various poorly run Democrat Cities with regard to their Protests and/or Riots unless, and until, they ask us for help,” Trump said Saturday in a post on his social media platform.

“We will, however, guard, and very powerfully so, any and all Federal Buildings that are being attacked by these highly paid Lunatics, Agitators, and Insurrectionists,” he added.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump speaks during an event in the Oval Office of the White House, Jan. 30, 2026, in Washington.
Francis Chung/EPA/Shutterstock
President Donald Trump speaks during an event in the Oval Office of the White House, Jan. 30, 2026, in Washington.
Francis Chung/EPA/Shutterstock

Trump emphasizes that agents will be ready to protect federal property should that be necessary but puts the onus on local and state police, writing "it is your obligation to also protect our Federal Property, Buildings, Parks, and everything else. We are there to protect Federal Property, only as a back up, in that it is Local and State Responsibility to do so,” he said.

Trump later threatens deploying the military to areas where federal property is being damaged.

“Therefore, to all complaining Local Governments, Governors, and Mayors, let us know when you are ready, and we will be there — But, before we do so, you must use the word, “PLEASE.” Remember that I stated, in the strongest of language, to BEWARE — ICE, Border Patrol or, if necessary, our Military, will be extremely powerful and tough in the protection of our Federal Property.”

-ABC News' Lalee Ibssa


Jan 31, 2026 9:35 PM

Judge orders 5-year-old, father released

Five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, asylum seekers who were arrested last week in Minnesota, were ordered to be released by a federal judge in Texas on Saturday.
U.S. District Judge Fred Biery ordered the boy and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, released from the immigration detention center at Dilley "as soon as practicable" but no later than Feb. 3.

PHOTO: A screenshot of U.S. District Judge Fred Biery Jan. 31 order.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, San Antonio Division
A screenshot of U.S. District Judge Fred Biery Jan. 31 order.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, San Antonio Division

The judge concluded his opinion with a photo of the five-year-old when he was detained.
Read more here.
-ABC News' John Quinones, Laura Romero, and James Scholz


Jan 31, 2026 6:45 PM

ICE expands administrative arrest powers, memo says

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) expanded their agents ability to make arrests when they don't have a warrant, according to a memo reviewed by ABC News.

"It is without a doubt that ICE immigration officers will encounter additional aliens present in violation of the immigration laws or otherwise removable during at-large operations," the Jan. 28 memo, signed by Acting Director Todd Lyons, said.

PHOTO: Department of Homeland Security police officers block the entrance of the Bishop Whipple Federal Building while protesters oppose ICE detentions almost week after Alex Pretti was killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis, January 30, 2026.
Octavio Jones/AFP via Getty Images
Department of Homeland Security police officers block the entrance of the Bishop Whipple Federal Building while protesters oppose ICE detentions almost week after Alex Pretti was killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis, January 30, 2026.
Octavio Jones/AFP via Getty Images

"In that case, immigration officers must immediately determine whether an administrative warrant can be timely obtained. If an authorized supervisory immigration officer is present or otherwise accessible, he or she may immediately issue Form I-200 if probable cause of removability is established," he added.

"If no supervisor is available to issue an administrative warrant, or a supervisor cannot timely issue an administrative warrant, then the officer or agent must consider whether a warrantless immigration arrest is permissible," the memo said.

PHOTO: A protester shouts at officers of the Sheriff's office that were clearing demonstrators from the main road leading to the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, Minnesota, January 30, 2026.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images
A protester shouts at officers of the Sheriff's office that were clearing demonstrators from the main road leading to the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, Minnesota, January 30, 2026.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images


ICE has said they are going after those who are targets of an enforcement operation, but the memo expands that authority, administratively.

The memo allows for ICE agents to arrest someone for being in the U.S. illegally, if an officer feels the subject is "likely to escape" before a warrant can be issued.

-ABC News' Luke Barr



Jan 31, 2026 12:27 AM

Don Lemon released following arrest

PHOTO: Don Lemon speaks to the media after a hearing at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Courthouse in Los Angeles, Jan. 30, 2026.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
Don Lemon speaks to the media after a hearing at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Courthouse in Los Angeles, Jan. 30, 2026.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

A federal judge in Los Angeles allowed Don Lemon to be released on his own recognizance following the former CNN journalist's arrest in connection with an incident in which anti-ICE protesters disrupted a Minnesota church service.

In brief remarks outside the courthouse on Friday, Lemon said he was arrested for "something that I've been doing for the last 30 years, and that is covering the news," and vowed to not stop that work.

"The First Amendment of the Constitution protects that work for me and for countless of other journalists who do what I do," he said. "I stand with all of them, and I will not be silenced. I look forward to my day in court."

Lemon and eight others are charged with conspiracy against rights of religious freedom and an attempt to injure while exercising religious freedom in the two-count indictment, which was unsealed Friday.


Jan 24, 2026 11:16 PM

Gun Owners Caucus 'concerned' over shooting, calls for full investigation

The Gun Owners Caucus released a lengthy statement following the shooting death of 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.

Pretti was a legal gun owner who had no criminal record, the Minneapolis police chief said.

"We are deeply concerned by this morning’s reports that a federal law enforcement operation in Minneapolis resulted in the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti by federal agents," the group said in a statement.

The group added that "despite widespread speculation regarding intent, there has been no evidence produced indicating an intent to harm the officers." The group called for a "full and transparent investigation by both state and federal authorities."

"Every peaceable Minnesotan has the right to keep and bear arms—including while attending protests, acting as observers, or exercising their First Amendment rights. These rights do not disappear when someone is lawfully armed, and they must be respected and protected at all times," the caucus said.


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