Bovino Regrets Not Arresting More in Minneapolis After 700-Agent Pullout

Greg Bovino, who led the federal border patrol before becoming the public face of the Minneapolis deportation campaign, told the BBC on Friday that the recent withdrawal of federal officers represents a surrender by the Trump administration. The 56-year-old former chief said the pullout of approximately 700 agents from Minnesota has brought enforcement efforts in the city to a virtual standstill.

Bovino made the comments while speaking in Detroit, where he is campaigning for stricter immigration enforcement measures. He stated that the administration effectively threw the towel in, leaving him to regret that he did not go harder in the state to arrest more individuals. He described the agents deployed to Minneapolis as the real victims of what he identified as the most violent resistance faced by any law enforcement mission in US history.

The former chief defended the tactics used during the operation, which ended with the deaths of US citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti in January. Both incidents were captured on video, triggering widespread protests and a bipartisan backlash. Bovino maintained that video evidence does not undermine his claim that Good and Pretti intended to harm officers. He asserted that violence was perpetrated against government agents and that society requires people to follow the law to avoid consequences.

Good's family filed two civil lawsuits against the administration earlier this month, alleging wrongful death and a conspiracy to interfere with the civil rights of protesters. The legal action names Bovino and Jonathan Ross, the agent who shot Good, for their individual roles in the operation. The family’s lawyers responded to Bovino’s remarks by calling his comments propaganda and stating that he cannot act as judge, jury, and executioner. They said their team looks forward to deposing Bovino and the other defendants.

Bovino said he is not responding to the lawsuit directly, noting that people file legal actions frequently. He praised the officers sent to the city while waving away the legal action. A White House spokeswoman has previously dismissed the lawsuits as baseless. President Trump initially described Good as having run over an ICE officer violently, but later called her death a tragedy and acknowledged that agents sometimes make mistakes.

The former border chief said he was removed from his role shortly after the January shootings, a decision attributed to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who was fired by Trump in March. Bovino said he has not received the final word on why he was let go and has since retired from the border patrol. He has called for total spectrum immigration enforcement backed by the military and has 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 illegal aliens leaving the country due to his policies. Bovino also floated the idea of exploring a presidential run in 2028, suggesting he might enter the race if politicians do not step up to do their jobs. He recently addressed a far-right rally in Michigan, where activists called for the deportation of Abdul El-Sayed, a Democratic Senate candidate who would be the first Muslim US senator if he defeats Republican Mike Rogers.