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New Minnesota ICE shooting video angle emerges; ‘officer acting in self-defense’
A new video angle, showing an ICE officer fatally shooting a Minneapolis motorist on Wednesday, has emerged on social media
A new video angle, showing an ICE officer fatally shooting a Minneapolis motorist on Wednesday, has emerged on social media. The slow-motion clip has raised concerns, with commentators claiming that the woman (victim) was trying to ram the car into the agent when he shot in ‘self-defense’. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said that the agent fired ‘defensive’ shots.
The shooting took place in a residential neighborhood, just about a mile from where George Floyd was killed by police in 2020. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, during a visit to Texas, said that the incident was an ‘act of domestic terrorism’ carried out against ICE officers by a woman who ‘attempted to run them over and rammed them with her vehicle. An officer of ours acted quickly and defensively, shot, to protect himself and the people around him’.
Self-defense?
The DHS said that the woman attempted to ‘run over our law enforcement officers in an attempt to kill them—an act of domestic terrorism’.
“An ICE officer, fearing for his life, the lives of his fellow law enforcement and the safety of the public, fired defensive shots. He used his training and saved his own life and that of his fellow officers. The alleged perpetrator was hit and is deceased. The ICE officers who were hurt are expected to make full recoveries,” the statement on X, platform formerly known as Twitter, read.
Social media commentators, meanwhile, posted new slow-motion videos of the incident, making similar claims.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said that the DHS's explanation was ‘garbage’. He further criticized the federal deployment of more than 2,000 officers to the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul as part of the immigration crackdown.
“What they are doing is not to provide safety in America. What they are doing is causing chaos and distrust,” Frey said, calling on the federal agents to leave. “They’re ripping families apart. They’re sowing chaos on our streets, and in this case, quite literally killing people.”
“They are already trying to spin this as an action of self-defense. Having seen the video myself, I wanna tell everybody directly, that is bullshit,” the mayor said.
Police issues statement
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara briefly described the shooting to reporters but, unlike federal officials, gave no indication that the 37-year-old driver was trying to harm anyone. He said she had been shot in the head.
“This woman was in her vehicle and was blocking the roadway on Portland Avenue. ... At some point a federal law enforcement officer approached her on foot and the vehicle began to drive off," the chief said. "At least two shots were fired. The vehicle then crashed on the side of the roadway.”
(With AP inputs)
