DOJ charges 15 with conspiracy to harm ICE agents

The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday said it had charged 15 people connected to antifa groups in Minnesota with conspiring to impede and injure federal agents. The indictment alleged that, since January, the defendants conspired to impede the efforts of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to do their jobs of arresting and detaining illegal immigrants in Minnesota. Federal agents deployed to Minnesota late last year but drew intense criticism and further opposition following the shooting deaths of U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

What exactly did these individuals allegedly do? The individuals in question conspired with other members of antifa groups in Minnesota on Signal group chats, social media, and word of mouth about how to impede federal agents, prosecutors said. The individuals explicitly plotted ways to infiltrate peaceful protests and use the “strength in numbers” that came with them to impede federal officials, the DOJ alleged. The members of the groups also allegedly plotted to barricade streets so that federal officials couldn’t use them, the indictment claimed.

Did they engage in any violent acts? At least one of the individuals indicted was present on Jan. 14, when rioters broke into FBI vehicles on the north side of Minneapolis and stole several items and a firearm, the DOJ said. The individual later explained to other members of a Signal group chat that the break-in had taken place, claiming the vehicle belonged to ICE, per the indictment. The individuals, for days in advance, plotted a blockade and protest at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in southern Minneapolis that occurred on Jan. 23, the DOJ’s indictment alleged.

Dig deeper: Read my reports from the streets of Minneapolis earlier this year about the ways residents responded to ICE’s increased presence in the city with protests and assistance.