Wednesday, January 28, 2026
A man was arrested after he lunged at and sprayed U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar with an unknown substance during a town hall Tuesday evening in Minneapolis. Minneapolis Police say Omar was uninjured and resumed speaking, but said that Minneapolis Forensic Scientists responded to process the scene. The town hall Omar and other officials were to meet with community members about the federal immigration operations going on throughout the state. Omar was speaking when the man got up, lunged at the congresswoman, and sprayed an unknown liquid from a syringe before being tackled. Police say the man was arrested for third-degree assault. Those in attendance stated that the liquid looked brown in color and had an odor, the man also was yelling the word "Garbage" at Omar. “During her town hall, an agitator tried to attack the Congresswoman by spraying an unknown substance with a syringe," said Omar's office in a statement. "Security and the Minneapolis Police Department quickly apprehended the individual. He is now in custody. The Congresswoman is okay. She continued with her town hall because she doesn’t let bullies win.” The White House has not responded to a message seeking comment Tuesday night.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey but held meetings Tuesday morning with federal border czar Tom Homan, one day after President Donald Trump said he was sending Homan to take over immigration enforcement operations in the state. According to a statement from Gov. Walz's office, Walz and Homan met Tuesday morning and "agreed on the need for an ongoing dialogue." In the meeting, the governor's office said Walz listed three priorities for Minnesota: Impartial investigations into the Minneapolis shootings involving federal agents A swift, significant reduction in the number of federal forces in Minnesota and An end to the campaign of "retribution" against Minnesota. Governor Walz has made the Minnesota Department of Public Safety the liaison to work with Homan on the state's goals. Mayor Frey stated "I appreciated the conversation the Chief and I had with Border Czar Homan," Frey said in a statement. "I reiterated that my main ask is for Operation Metro Surge to come to an end as quickly as possible. Public safety works best when it's built on community trust – not tactics that create fear or division." Frey said he also spoke about the negative impacts the immigration operations have had on the Twin Cities, and added that the city "does not and will not enforce federal immigration laws." Frey's office called the conversation "productive" and said that city leaders will continue to have conversations with Homan and his team. President Trump on the Will Cain show Tuesday stated that he laments on the recent shooting in Minneapolis by federal agents but said that the recent removing of Gregory Bovino and bringing in Tom Homan is not in any way a pullback.
St. Cloud residents Monday night called for Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations to end, the Department of Homeland Security says it has taken 14 hardened criminals off the city’s streets. According to the DHS worst of the worst criminal aliens list, three of the men come from Burma, two each from Somalia, Kenya, and Honduras, and one each from Laos, Sudan, Thailand, Guatemala, and Liberia. Five of the men had prior convictions for sexual assault. Other criminal convictions include weapons charges, fraud, theft, drug charges, robbery, battery, and forgery. In all, 246 people with serious criminal convictions have been taken into custody statewide. DHS released the numbers following Monday’s city council meeting and public forum, where residents showed up to complain about what they called racial profiling and harassment by ICE agents. Those in attendance asked the city to do more to make residents feel safe.
The sexual abuse trial of a St. Cloud man got underway on Tuesday in Stearns County District Court. Forty-three-year-old Scott Erickson is charged with two counts of felony 1st-degree criminal sexual conduct with a child under the age of 14. According to the criminal complaint, a nurse with the Midwest Children's Resource Center reported in 2024 that a girl shared that she had been sexually abused by Erickson starting when she was six-years-old. The abuse allegedly took place at homes in St. Cloud and St. Joseph between 2021 and 2024. The victim said the abuse stopped when she was seven or eight years old. Erickson is accused of raping the girl and forcing her to perform sex acts multiple times over that time period. A Stearns County judge has set aside four days for the trial.
Morrison County Sheriff Shawn Larsen posted Tuesday " Sex trafficking doesn’t just occur in metropolitan areas. Unfortunately, it happens everywhere, including here in our own communities. We all need to work together and remain aware of what’s happening around us. Throughout the rest of this month, we will be sharing more information on this topic and ways you can help make a difference.
An 80 year old from Nevis has died in a two-vehicle head on crash Tuesday in Hubbard County. Around 12:10 two vehicles were on Highway 34 when one crossed the center-line and struck the other head-on. The other driver from Santiago was taken to a Fargo Hospital with serious injuries. The name of the fatality has not been released as of Tuesday night by the State Patrol.
Death Notices: Darvin S. Dahlke, age 90 of Hillman.
Weather: sunny skies today but still cold, high 4 above, wind chills still near -15. Tonight clear and cold low around -13 wind chills near -22. Thursday sunny and cold, high 5 above low around -11. Friday clouds increase high around 8, temps drop to around -6 Friday then rise toward Saturday morning. Saturday high near 16 with light snow starting later in the day, snow likely Saturday night low 7 above, Snow early then partly cloudy by afternoon Sunday warmer, high 25, low around 13 above zero.
Sports: The Denver Broncos fired their offensive coordinator yesterday Joe Lombardi after Coach Sean Payton said he didn't do enough to get them to the Super Bowl, as Denver lost to New England 10-7 on Sunday in the AFC Championship. Local action yesterday Flyer Nordic Skiing boys 2nd at an invite, Flyer Girls Basketball and Pierz Boys Basketball get big wins last night. Foley at Pierz boys basketball Thursday at 7:15pm on 94ROCKS KFML. Listen to Wild Hockey Saturday and Monday on Q92 WYRQ and also the Super Bowl at 5:30pm on February 8th on AM960 KLTF.