President Donald Trump on Monday moved to take direct control of federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota, dispatching his border czar, Tom Homan, to oversee Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations following the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse, by a Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis. The decision sidelines Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and places Homan in a reporting line directly to the president, underscoring the White House's concern about escalating legal exposure and public backlash.
"I am sending Tom Homan to Minnesota tonight," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there. Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me." The move comes amid mounting scrutiny of Operation Metro Surge, a large-scale immigration enforcement effort linked to two U.S. citizen deaths in the Minneapolis area within three weeks.
Inside the Department of Homeland Security, officials described a deepening crisis of credibility. Multiple people with direct knowledge of internal discussions said statements by senior administration figures about Pretti's death were "directly contradicted by videos of the incident and witness accounts." Fox News reporter Bill Melugin said he had spoken with more than half a dozen federal immigration officials who viewed DHS messaging as "a case study on how not to do crisis PR."
Tensions sharpened after Noem asserted-without releasing evidence-that Pretti "approached US Border Patrol officers with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun" and characterized the encounter as "domestic terrorism." Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara told reporters Pretti was believed to be a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry, while videos circulating online appear to show him not holding a firearm during the encounter. White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller labeled Pretti a "would-be assassin," a description local officials have disputed.
Pretti, who worked at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, was shot during protests against Operation Metro Surge. According to accounts cited by local authorities and video reviewed by media, federal agents surrounded him as he filmed an enforcement action, deployed a chemical irritant, restrained him on the ground, and fired multiple shots. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Trump declined to endorse Noem's account and repeatedly refused to say whether the agent who fired had "done the right thing."
A federal judge intervened over the weekend. U.S. District Court Judge Eric Tostrud issued a temporary restraining order barring DHS from "destroying or altering evidence related to the fatal shooting involving federal officers." A separate hearing is scheduled to consider whether to pause the Minnesota enforcement operation.
Homan's arrival represents an unusually direct intervention. A former Border Patrol agent who began his career in 1984, Homan later served as executive associate director of ICE enforcement and removal operations under President Barack Obama, receiving a Presidential Rank Award in 2015. He became acting ICE director during Trump's first term and was later appointed border czar in November 2024, a role not requiring Senate confirmation.
Key elements now under Homan's remit include:
- On-the-ground ICE operations in Minneapolis and St. Paul
- Coordination with investigators probing alleged fraud in Minnesota social services programs, where federal prosecutors estimate at least $9 billion was stolen
- Interface with state officials, amid calls by Gov. Tim Walz to reduce the federal footprint
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Homan will coordinate with officials leading the fraud investigations. Trump later said he had "a very good call" with Walz and claimed the two were "on a similar wavelength," even as the governor has urged the administration to withdraw federal agents after three shootings in a month.
