Chicago-area cops helped HSI spy on Minnesota anti-ICE activists
Chicago-area cops and HSI agents surveilled anti-ICE activists in Minneapolis last spring, according to documents.
Intelligence analysis by Qwen 2.5 (3B)
Chicago-area cops and HSI agents surveilled anti-ICE activists in Minneapolis last spring, according to documents.
Some police officers and FBI agents watched a meeting where people talked about not letting ICE (a group that tries to deport immigrants) come to their town. The police used hidden cameras and other tricks to find out who was at the meeting.
Analysis
{"heading_1":"Surveillance Details","paragraph_1":"The Chicago Mayor’s Office did not provide comment ahead of publication. In response to queries from WIRED, the CPD claimed that no First Amendment notifications to CPD’s chain of command or the department’s general counsel were made for the April 2 investigation, and said its work with HSI is permitted under Illinois law because it pertained to criminal enforcement, not immigration.","paragraph_2":"A source with knowledge of the matter stated that CPD believed the early April surveillance operation was in service of a federal racketeering investigation.","paragraph_3":"ICE would neither confirm nor deny details of past or present investigations and said individual agents are not authorized to speak to the media. HSI is also emerging as the point agency for Trump’s war on internal dissent and opposition politicians: Its agents, not the FBI, conducted the Minnesota 15 investigation and served a search warrant earlier this month on congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota.","heading_2":"Local and Federal Cooperation","heading_3":"Criticism and Response"}
Key points
- Chicago-area cops and HSI agents surveilled anti-ICE activists in Minneapolis last spring
- Local cops and HSI agents used two undercover agents, electronic surveillance, audio recordings, license-plate-reader data, and surveillance cameras to identify the April 2 event's attendees
- The Chicago Mayor’s Office did not provide comment ahead of publication
This incident could lead to better rules for when police can watch people's meetings, to make sure they don't cross the line into being too political.
If the police and FBI keep doing this kind of spying, it could make people feel scared to speak out against ICE or other groups they don't agree with.
