Border Patrol agent shoves journalist into protesters in Minnesota

Independent journalist Nick Valencia was pushed by a federal officer into a line of demonstrators while wearing a press badge and repeatedly announcing himself as press during a protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Jan. 24, 2026.

Tensions between Minneapolis residents and federal agents have escalated after a sweeping federal immigration enforcement surge. Unrest intensified after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer killed resident Renee Good, an ICE officer shot and wounded a man and Border Patrol agents fatally shot resident Alex Pretti.

Valencia, a former CNN correspondent, told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he arrived at the scene of an impromptu protest shortly after Pretti’s killing. He said while some federal agents acknowledged his press credentials, others dismissed him entirely.

“They’re in this era now where it’s us versus them,” said Valencia, who added that his new status as an independent journalist made him vulnerable during his coverage. “I don’t have the luxury of a crew like I did with CNN.”

Valencia said one Border Patrol agent grabbed him and shoved him about 30 yards, from behind the police line and into a group of demonstrators.

In a video of the altercation posted to Facebook, Valencia is seen near the police line when an agent approaches him and tells him, “Back the fuck up.”

“I’m independent media. Your colleagues have let me be here,” Valencia responded as the agent approached him, saying, “I don’t care who you are.”

Valencia then shows him his badge. The camera then shakes as the agent manhandles him and orders him to leave the area. Valencia repeatedly objects.

Valencia later told the Tracker, “I was roughed up on Saturday and pushed across into a line of demonstrators, even though I repeatedly told them I wasn’t and didn’t want to be put in the line of fire.”

Valencia said he approached the agent afterward, making it clear that he was a journalist there to document, and said the man acknowledged him.

About 30 minutes later, Valencia recounted, another agent became aggressive and attempted to push him, but the first agent intervened.

“He came to my defense,” he said. “I was surprised at that.”

Throughout the day, Valencia was hit with a barrage of chemical irritants, causing him to temporarily lose his vision and violently dry heave. He was also hit in the shins with tear gas canisters.