'India Closely Watching': MEA on Fatal Shooting of Minneapolis Woman by ICE Officer
New Delhi: Following the fatal shooting of a woman by an immigration and customs enforcement (ICE) officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the United States, the Ministry of External Affairs has said that it was “concerned” and following the developments closely.
“We are closely following the developments. We are concerned as we have a large Indian community in the US, including students, professionals and others,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said during a press briefing on Friday (January 9).
According to the Associated Press, this is at least the fifth death to result from the aggressive US immigration crackdown the Trump administration launched last year.
Meanwhile, The Guardian has reported that many others have died in detention while seeking asylum. They died of seizure and heart failure, stroke, respiratory failure, tuberculosis or suicide, it reported.
Multiple reports suggest that the FBI has now taken over the investigation into the shooting. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was quoted by BBC as saying that local authorities have "no jurisdiction" in the probe.
Also read: Minnesota Shooting Videos Challenge Administration Narrative, Policing Experts Question Tactics
As per AP, last September, ICE officers fatally shot another person outside Chicago, while two people have died after being struck by vehicles while fleeing immigration authorities. Meanwhile, a California farmworker fell from a greenhouse and broke his neck during an ICE raid last July.
No officers or agents have been charged in the deaths.
‘Self-defence’
According to the Department of Homeland Security, the ICE officer fired in “self-defence” as 37-year-old Renee Nicole Macklin Good “tried to run down officers with her vehicle”. Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey was quoted by AP as saying that the video of the incident showed it was reckless and unnecessary.
US President Donald Trump too repeated this while speaking to reporters. On watching the surveillance video, however, Trump struggled to justify the officer’s response and said, “It’s a terrible scene. I think it’s horrible to watch. No, I hate to see it.”
According to reports, in recent days, the Trump administration has sent more ICE agents into Minneapolis and throughout Minnesota amid allegations of fraud involving Somali residents there.
Protests erupted across Minnesota following the incident. Dozens of people gathered at a makeshift memorial in the city to pay tribute to Good, who was fatally killed on Wednesday, January 7.
Democrats have termed ICE's actions unlawful and said that there should be accountability. Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey has demanded that ICE leave town.
Meanwhile, National Guard troops have been deployed, along with local law enforcement, to stop the demonstrations.
During Trump’s first term, Minnesota saw similar protests following the killing of George Floyd that grew big enough to stain his presidency.
Past killings during ICE operations
On September 12, 2025, ICE agents fatally shot Silverio Villegas González, a 38-year-old line cook from Mexico, during a traffic stop in suburban Chicago. Relatives said González had dropped off one of his children at day care that morning.
The Department of Homeland Security had alleged that the federal agents were ‘pursuing a man with a history of reckless driving who entered the country illegally’ and that González evaded arrest and dragged an officer with his vehicle.
On July 10, immigration authorities were rounding up dozens of farmworkers at Glass House Farms in southern California when Jaime Alanis, a 57-year-old labourer from Mexico, fell from the roof of a greenhouse and broke his neck. He died at a hospital two days later.
On August 14, a man running away from ICE officers outside a Home Depot store in southern California died after being hit by an SUV while he tried to cross a nearby freeway. The ICE agents were conducting enforcement operations when the man, later identified as 52-year-old Roberto Carlos Montoya Valdez of Guatemala, fled on foot.
On October 23, Josué Castro Rivera died after getting hit by a pickup truck on a highway in Norfolk, Virginia, while trying to escape immigration authorities during a traffic stop. The 24-year-old from Honduras was heading to a gardening job with three passengers when ICE officers pulled over his vehicle.
This article went live on January ninth, two thousand twenty six, at forty-five minutes past five in the evening.The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
