As Minneapolis continues to reel over the death of Renee Good, a new report says the FBI is quietly mobilizing agents from across the nation

ICE agents

As protests against the presence of ICE continue in Minneapolis, the FBI is reportedly asking agents from all over the U.S. to travel to the city for temporary duty. The information was first reported by Bloomberg, which spoke to people familiar with the situation.

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Over the last few days, the bureau has been communicating with agents nationwide, seeking volunteers to transfer to the city temporarily. Despite the ongoing protests, the messages did not refer to anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protests specifically, and didn’t detail the assignment, the sources reported.

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There have been demonstrations in the city every day since the Department of Homeland Security ramped up immigration enforcement in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, deploying more than 2,000 federal officers.

Minnesota’s most populous city has become a core location for anti-ICE protests after an officer shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Good on January 7 while she was in her car.

So far, it is unclear what the FBI is likely to ask the volunteers to do in Minneapolis, as the primary job of FBI agents is traditionally to provide national security against terrorism, espionage, high-profile violent crimes, and organized crime.

‌ICE and other federal officers break a car window as they begin the process of removing a woman from her vehicle

On Friday, FBI Director Kash Patel and U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche visited the city amid the rising tensions. In a post on social media, Patel said he was “ working 24/7 cracking down on violent rioters and investigating the funding networks supporting the criminal actors with multiple arrests already.”

In October, around one-quarter of FBI agents were assigned to immigration-related duties, according to data shared by Democrat Senator Mark Warner, despite immigration not traditionally being part of the bureau’s remit.

Meanwhile, President Trump has also threatened to send the military to respond to the demonstrations, and the Pentagon has already ordered around 1,500 active-duty troops currently based in Alaska to prepare for possible deployment to Minnesota, according to The Washington Post.

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In a statement to the outlet, the White House said it was normal for the Pentagon “to be prepared for any decision the president may or may not make.”

Additionally, the state guard said in a statement that it had been “mobilized” by Democratic Gov. Tim Walz to support the Minnesota State Patrol “to assist in providing traffic support to protect life, preserve property, and support the rights of all Minnesotans to assemble peacefully.”

Federal law enforcement agents confront anti-US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) protesters outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building during a demonstration

Immigration officers were ordered on Friday not to arrest, detain, or pepper-spray peaceful protesters in Minneapolis, after some demonstrators claimed officers were violating their constitutional rights. District Judge Kate Menendez’s ruling addressed a case filed in December on behalf of six Minnesota activists.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin stated the ruling, saying her agency was taking “appropriate and constitutional measures to uphold the rule of law and protect our officers and the public from dangerous rioters.”