Key facts
- US government conducted extensive surveillance on anti-ICE protesters and leftwing organizations.
- The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) used undercover agents and infiltrated communications.
- Investigations targeted groups opposing the Trump administration's immigration policies.
- Financial records of mainstream unions and left-leaning nonprofits were obtained.
- The surveillance efforts were part of an operation called 'Operation Puppet Master'.
Newly disclosed records indicate that the US government, through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), engaged in extensive surveillance of anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) protesters and prominent leftwing organizations. The operation, dubbed 'Operation Puppet Master,' involved sending undercover agents to community meetings in the Twin Cities and New York, infiltrating digital communications like Signal chats, and obtaining financial records of mainstream unions and progressive nonprofit groups.
These internal DHS investigative reports were released on Thursday as part of a criminal case against 15 Minneapolis protesters accused of conspiring to impede immigration officers. The investigations, which began in January, followed a directive from President Trump's executive order designating 'antifa' as a domestic terrorist organization. The government alleged that major groups, including the AFL-CIO, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), and the Sunrise Movement, were connected to the alleged conspiracy, though none have been charged.
Attorneys for the defendants, including Kevin Riach, have criticized the scope of the investigations, calling it a 'mass spying campaign' and alleging that undercover agents participated in organizing and directing groups they were surveilling. DHS spokespeople did not respond to inquiries, and the Department of Justice (DoJ) declined to comment. The documents show agents attended training sessions, recorded meetings, and even posed as activists, with one agent offering to build items for 'direct-action' protests. Civil rights groups have expressed concern that the government is criminalizing lawful protest activity.