MSI previously reported that video evidence had raised questions about federal timelines and the handling of footage in Minneapolis immigration-enforcement cases. See related coverage.
Minneapolis released a city-owned security video on Monday showing a chase and scuffle that ended in a nonfatal shooting in January, and it led to the suspensions of two federal officers involved in a Trump administration immigration crackdown in Minnesota. The city said the footage was related to the earlier shooting and did not offer additional narrative detail beyond that characterization, saying it had “no additional information” and would not comment further.
The Jan. 14 incident involved federal officers chasing a Venezuelan man to his residence. Another Venezuelan man who lives at the same address was shot during the confrontation, according to the report describing the case and the video. The footage was captured by a Minneapolis-owned security camera, and federal authorities in February dropped all charges against the two immigrants tied to the episode.
Federal prosecutors had accused Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna and Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis of beating an ICE officer with a broom handle and a snow shovel during the encounter. The officer fired a single shot from his handgun, striking Sosa-Celis in his right thigh, and the episode drew immediate attention from protesters who soon gathered and clashed with other officers wearing gas masks and helmets.
In a statement, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the video “makes it crystal clear” that, “just like in other situations during Operation Metro Surge, the federal government’s account of what happened simply does not match the facts.” The statement aligned with the questions raised after the New York Times obtained a copy of the footage earlier and reported that federal investigators had access to the video within hours of the Jan. 14 shooting but did not watch it until nearly three weeks after charging the two men.
The city’s video description provided no fuller account of what it showed beyond identifying it as “related” to the shooting. The report said the video, shot from a distance in the dark, appears to show a person standing with a snow shovel outside the house before retreating toward the home and tossing the shovel into the yard, as another person being chased runs up from the street, falls on the sidewalk, then continues toward the house.
It described the three men as scuffling near the front steps for about 10 seconds, with the precise moment when Sosa-Celis was shot not clearly visible. The footage shows a car with flashing lights arriving, after which another person walks up, and the camera pans over to view the street before the vehicles arrived, raising questions about whether someone may have been controlling the camera in real time.
In February, the chief federal prosecutor for Minnesota, U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen, filed for an unusual motion to dismiss the cases and said the “newly discovered evidence” was “materially inconsistent” with allegations in the criminal complaint and evidence presented at a preliminary hearing. Rosen said dismissal with prejudice—meaning the charges could not be refiled—“would serve the interests of justice,” and prosecutors subsequently dropped all charges.
The Associated Press reported that Rosen and other federal prosecutors involved, as well as the Department of Justice, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday. The report also said Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not mention the video in a statement but reaffirmed its earlier position that two officers involved appeared to have given untruthful testimony under oath, and it said the officers were immediately placed on administrative leave while an internal investigation continued.
ICE said, “Lying under oath is a serious federal offense,” and that the U.S. Attorney’s Office was actively investigating the false statements. It added that, after the investigation concludes, the officers may face termination of employment and potential criminal prosecution, but the report said ICE did not elaborate on the status of the case.
Aljorna’s attorney did not immediately return a call seeking comment, the report said. Sosa-Celis’ attorney, Robin Wolpert, said, “The video is evidence in ongoing state and federal investigations so I can’t comment.” Both men were reported as free while they seek legal status, and the report said ICE took them back into custody for alleged immigration violations before releasing them again under court order.
State and county prosecutors, meanwhile, were reported as frustrated by the refusal of federal authorities to share information on the incident and on other fatal shootings involving federal officers in Minnesota, and they sued the Trump administration in late March for access to evidence they said they need to independently investigate the three shootings. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the video, citing an active investigation.