Bovino declares Minnesota agent exit a surrender

Greg Bovino, the former US border patrol chief who led the Minneapolis deportation drive, declared the withdrawal of federal agents a surrender by the Trump administration. He made the remarks during a BBC interview while campaigning in Detroit for stricter immigration controls.

The 56-year-old stated that the administration threw in the towel and that deportation efforts are now at a virtual standstill. Bovino said he regrets not going harder in Minnesota and not arresting more illegal aliens during the operation.

Approximately 700 agents left the state after the deaths of US citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti in January. Both shootings were captured on video and triggered a bipartisan backlash and widespread protests across the region.

President Donald Trump announced a de-escalation of the operation and transferred command to White House border tsar Tom Homan. Bovino described his agents as the real victims of the most violence any law enforcement mission has faced in US history.

Good's family filed two civil lawsuits earlier this month against the administration. The suits allege wrongful death and a conspiracy to interfere with the civil rights of protesters. One lawsuit names Bovino and agent Jonathan Ross for their individual roles in the operation that led to Good's death.

The legal team argues the operation created an environment for state-sponsored violence. A White House spokeswoman previously dismissed the claims as baseless. Bovino said he is not responding to the lawsuit and noted that people file legal actions all the time.

Family lawyers responded to Bovino's comments by saying he was spewing propaganda and could not serve as judge, jury and executioner. They added that their team looks forward to deposing Bovino and all defendants in the matter.

Bovino pushed back on video evidence suggesting Good and Pretti intended to harm agents. He insisted that violence was perpetrated against US government agents and that society must follow the law to avoid consequences. Trump initially described Good as running over an ICE officer but later called her death a tragedy.

Asked why he was removed from his role, Bovino said he still has not received the final word from the administration. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was fired by Trump in March, and Bovino has since retired from the border patrol.

Bovino has called for total spectrum immigration enforcement backed by the military. He claimed without evidence that 100 million people are in the US illegally. A White House spokesperson said Trump delivered the largest reduction in illegal immigration in modern history, with more than 3 million people leaving the country due to his policies.

Bovino also floated the possibility of a presidential run in 2028. He said politicians must step up or something might happen. He recently addressed a far-right rally in Michigan where activists demanded the deportation of Abdul El-Sayed, a US-born citizen and Democratic Senate candidate.