Minnesota state Sen. Hoffman says he witnessed aftermath of ICE coffee shop raid: "This isn't right"
Democratic Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman, who survived a political assassination attempt this summer inside his Brooklyn Park home, took to social media to decry an ICE raid at his neighborhood coffee shop on Friday.
Brooklyn Park police confirmed members of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement raided a business off Zane Avenue North and 85th Avenue North at about 10 a.m.
"Responding officers investigated the claim and verified that Homeland Security Investigations Agents had arrested only one staff member from an area business," police said.
Hoffman, whose district encompasses the city, gave a bleak account of the raid's aftermath at the business Crumbs and Coffee.
"This morning I went to have breakfast at Crumbs and Coffee in Brooklyn Park. Instead, I walked into a dark café with the door standing open. Money sat on the counter. Coats were still draped over booths," Hoffman wrote. "I called the police to secure the building. I then spoke with Mayor [Hollies] Winston, who confirmed that ICE had just conducted a raid. The two owners of Crumbs and Coffee were taken. Customers had been told to leave moments earlier, warned of a supposed emergency."
Hoffman posed this question in his post: "Since when are they considered the 'worst of the worst?'" The senator was likely referencing a Homeland Security press release on Friday, in which Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin claimed the department's agents have "arrested more than 400 illegal aliens including pedophiles, rapists, and violent thugs since Operation Metro Surge began" earlier this month in the Twin Cities.
"These are small business owners. Taxpayers. People who invested in our community, created jobs, and served their neighbors every day," Hoffman wrote. "This isn't right. And it's not who we should be targeting if we care about safe, strong communities."
Brooklyn Park police said they weren't involved in the raid.
WCCO has reported on the toll Operation Metro Surge has taken on Twin Cities small businesses run by Latino and Somali Minnesotans, with customers and employees alike staying clear out of fear of detainment.
This story will be updated.