Somali Minneapolis resident details ‘erroneous arrest,’ detainment by ICE

A 20-year-old Minneapolis resident, joined by Mayor Jacob Frey and Police Chief Brian O’Hara, detailed what he calls an “erroneous arrest” by ICE.

Mubashir, a U.S. citizen, was on lunch break from his job when ICE agents arrived to arrest him. According to Mubashir, he was slammed to the ground and put into a chokehold.

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“I told him, ‘I’m a U.S. citizen, what is going on?’” Mubashir said. “He didn’t seem to care.”

He added that the agent never identified himself as an ICE agent.

“I felt like I was getting assaulted, like I was getting kidnapped,” Mubashir said.

The agent put Mubashir into a squad, where he said ICE needed to verify that Mubashir was a citizen, and, after several failed attempts to scan his face and fingerprints, brought him to the detention center at the Bishop Henry Whipple federal building.

At one point, a man approached the squad with a copy of Mubashir’s passport. But the ICE agent said that Mubashir would still be detained.

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Mubashir said he requested water and medical assistance, but was denied water and told there weren’t any medical personnel at the facility.

Finally, Mubashir was given his phone to pull up his identification, and was let go after agents scanned his fingerprints.

When he asked agents to drop him off at the location where he was detained, Mubashir said the agents told him he had to walk home in the snow.

“I asked three times, they said, ‘No, you’re walking,’” Mubashir said. “Eventually, my parents came and picked me up.”

Both Frey and O’Hara condemned the incident.

Frey called out the ICE agents involved for their violence and unwillingness to believe that Mubashir is a citizen.

O’Hara added that city leaders don’t object to lawful arrests, but hope that the arrests can be well-planned for the safety of everybody. He also pointed to stories of ICE agents using what are “at the very least, questionable methods and a use of resources that doesn’t appear to be getting a return on investment,” referencing the detainment of U.S. citizens.

Governor Tim Walz announced Wednesday that he has sent a letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, urging her to review and respond to the arrest of multiple U.S. citizens by ICE agents in Minneapolis.

“The forcefulness, lack of communication, and unlawful practices displayed by your agents will not be tolerated in Minnesota,” the letter begins.

Walz referenced the arrests of Susan Tincher and Mubashir — both U.S. citizens. Tincher was acting as a “citizen observer” of ICE arrests when she was arrested.

RELATED: Woman says she was detained by ICE in Minneapolis for being a ‘citizen observer’

In his letter, Walz called for any federal agents who acted unlawfully to be placed on administrative leave.

You can read the full letter below:

12.10.2025_DHSLetter_U.S.CitizensArrestsDownload

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS has reached out to ICE and the Department of Homeland Security for comment and more information.
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