Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on Wednesday reaffirmed his administration’s stance of limiting cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, even when pressed about a case involving an undocumented immigrant accused of killing a local woman while allegedly driving drunk.
Appearing on “Fox & Friends,” Frey argued that the current federal enforcement push in Minneapolis goes beyond targeting serious crime.
“We are willing to work with people when it’s about murder and when it’s about crime. But the truth is that this ain’t about that,” Frey said. He added that the city’s immigrant community matters to Minneapolis, saying, “We love them and we care about them.”
Host Griff Jenkins questioned Frey about the death of Victoria Eileen Harwell, who was killed in August 2024. Authorities have accused German Llangari Inga, an Ecuadorian national in the U.S. illegally, of causing the fatal crash while intoxicated.
According to the timeline discussed during the interview, Llangari Inga was initially arrested in connection with the case, after which ICE filed a detainer request with the Hennepin County Jail. The jail later released him without notifying federal authorities.
He was arrested again on May 10, 2025, on a vehicular homicide warrant by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, and ICE lodged another detainer that same day. He was released three days later, again without ICE being notified, the report said. ICE ultimately arrested him on May 16, 2025.
Authorities said a preliminary breath test showed his blood alcohol content was more than twice Minnesota’s legal limit. A subsequent blood test taken about 2.5 hours later reportedly showed a BAC of 0.141%, still above the legal threshold.
At the time, DHS assistant secretary for public affairs Tricia McLaughlin criticized sanctuary-style policies, saying, “Remember sanctuary politicians are fighting for criminal illegal aliens,” and added that the administration was “fighting for the victims of illegal alien crime, like Eileen Harwell.”
Jenkins asked Frey why Minneapolis would not cooperate with ICE in cases involving people with criminal histories or outstanding warrants, so they can be transferred safely into federal custody.
Frey responded that he supports investigations, prosecutions, and incarceration for people who commit serious crimes in Minneapolis, regardless of immigration status.
“If you commit a crime, if you commit fraud, if you commit carjacking or a murder, you should be investigated, charged, prosecuted, held accountable, and yes, arrested and put in jail,” Frey said. “That is my position.”
But he maintained that, in his view, many of those being arrested by ICE in Minneapolis are not posing a threat to public safety.
“What I am saying is that a lot of the people that ICE is picking up right now in our city are not a problem for Minneapolis,” he said, adding that many immigrants have started businesses and lived in the city for years.
Frey also said the increased federal presence has created disruption.
“We care deeply about our immigrant population. We care about everybody in our city, and what we’re seeing right now is the kind of chaos that is being caused by this massive influx of ICE agents isn’t helpful,” he said.
