Feds Drop Charges Against Man Shot by Agent in Minneapolis

UPDATE Feb 13, 2026 1:29 PM CST

A federal judge in Minneapolis on Friday ordered the dismissal of felony assault charges against two Venezuelan men, including one shot in the leg by an immigration officer, after new evidence emerged undercutting the government's version of events. In a highly unusual motion to dismiss filed late Thursday, US Attorney for the District of Minnesota Daniel N. Rosen said "newly discovered evidence" in the criminal case against Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna and Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis "is materially inconsistent with the allegations against them" made in a criminal complaint and at a court hearing last month, the AP reports. US District Court Judge Paul A. Magnuson dismissed the case with prejudice, meaning the charges against the two men cannot be resubmitted.

• The day after the Jan. 14 incident, Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed an officer fired a "defensive shot" after he " was ambushed and attacked by three individuals who beat him with snow shovels and the handles of brooms." The agent's account was not supported by video evidence or by witnesses, who said the agent fired through a door after the men retreated inside, MPR News reports. Four children were in the apartment. "The charges against them were based on lies by an ICE agent who recklessly shot into their home through a closed door," said Brian D. Clark, a lawyer for the two men. "They are so happy justice is being served by the government's request to dismiss all charges with prejudice."

Jan 15, 2026 12:00 AM CST

A federal officer shot a person in the leg in Minneapolis after being attacked with a shovel and broom handle while trying to make an arrest Wednesday, federal officials said. The shooting took place about 4.5 miles north of where an immigration agent fatally shot Renee Good on Jan. 7, the AP reports. The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on X that federal law enforcement officers stopped a person from Venezuela who was in the US illegally. The person drove away and crashed into a parked car before taking off on foot, DHS said.

After officers reached the person, two other people arrived from a nearby apartment and all three started attacking the officer, according to DHS. "Fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired a defensive shot to defend his life," DHS said. The officer and the subject are both in the hospital and the two people who came out of the apartment are in custody, it said. Sources tell the Star Tribune that the man crashed the car in front of his home and his family fought the agents.

• Earlier Wednesday, a judge gave the Trump administration time to respond to a request to suspend its immigration crackdown in Minnesota, while the Pentagon looked for military lawyers to join what has become a chaotic law enforcement effort in the state. Plumes of tear gas, bursts of chemical irritants, and the screech of protest whistles have become common on the streets of Minneapolis, especially since Good's shooting. Agents have yanked people from cars and homes and been confronted by angry bystanders who are demanding that officers pack up and leave.
• "What we need most of all right now is a pause. The temperature needs to be lowered," state Assistant Attorney General Brian Carter said during the first hearing in a lawsuit filed by Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
• During a televised speech Wednesday evening, Gov. Tim Walz described Minnesota as being in chaos, saying what's happening in the state "defies belief." "Let's be very, very clear, this long ago stopped being a matter of immigration enforcement," he said. "Instead, it's a campaign of organized brutality against the people of Minnesota by our own federal government." Walz added that "accountability" will be coming through the courts.