On Tuesday, Minnesota law officials called out ICE agents for racially profiling citizens and shared a chilling warning: these aggressive tactics are putting public trust in law officers at risk.

In recent weeks, immigration backlash has escalated after the fatal shooting of Renee Good at the hands of an ICE officer, as well as numerous protests and injuries involving residents.

Though this announcement comes after recent, questionable encounters in the Twin Cities where people of color — including off-duty officers — were allegedly stopped, boxed in by vehicles, and ordered to prove they belonged in the country, despite being U.S. citizens.

"What we're hearing is they're being stopped in traffic stops or on the street with no cause and being forced to demand paperwork if they're here legally," said Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Rooley in a public statement. "We started hearing from our police officers the same complaints as they fell victim to this while off duty. Every person who has had this happen to them is a person of color."

In one particular incident, Rooley described an off-duty officer of color who was driving when multiple federal vehicles surrounded her car. Agents allegedly demanded “paperwork,” drew their guns, and knocked the officer’s phone from her hand when she tried to record the encounter, before leaving without explanation once she identified herself as law enforcement.

Rooley and more than two dozen law enforcement leaders say that over the past couple of weeks, they have heard a wave of similar complaints from residents and their own officers, all people of color, who report being questioned or harassed over their perceived immigration status. 

They stress that immigration enforcement can be legitimate and necessary, but say that targeting people solely because of how they look crosses a line and undermines years of work to build stronger relationships with communities.

“This isn’t just important because it happened to off-duty police officers,” Bruley said. “If it is happening to our officers, it pains me to think of how many of our community members are falling victim to this kind of treatment every day.”