Border czar Tom Homan has assumed control of immigration enforcement operations in Minnesota, replacing Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino who faced criticism following fatal shootings involving federal agents.
President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social Monday that he was sending Homan to Minnesota. “He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there,” Trump wrote. “Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me.”
Bovino, 55, had become the most visible federal official during Operation Metro Surge, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement effort in Minneapolis that led to intense controversy after two fatal shootings. The first shooting earlier in January involved ICE officer Jonathan Ross, who fatally shot Renee Nicole Good. The second occurred Saturday when Border Patrol agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse.
Following Pretti’s death, Bovino defended the agents’ actions at a news conference, claiming Pretti “wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement.” Witnesses, local officials and Pretti’s family have challenged that characterization, saying he was holding a phone, not a weapon, when he was shot.
Trump administration officials told NBC News that an unknown number of federal agents will leave Minneapolis as part of the leadership transition. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott will join Homan in Minnesota.
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Homan, 64, has more than four decades of experience in border and immigration enforcement. During the Barack Obama administration, he led ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations unit and received a Presidential Rank Award in 2015, one of the highest honors for senior civil servants.
Bovino has served as commander-at-large of the United States Border Patrol since 2025. He joined the Border Patrol in 1996 and was assigned to El Paso, Texas. By 2008, he had become an assistant chief at the Border Patrol’s Yuma, Arizona sector. He later served as chief of sectors in New Orleans and El Centro, California.
During Trump’s second presidency, Bovino became involved in high-profile immigration enforcement operations. He was named tactical commander of a mass raid operation in Los Angeles in June 2025. He has appeared at operations in Charlotte, North Carolina, New Orleans and Minneapolis.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz met with Homan Monday. The two “agreed on the need for an ongoing dialogue and will continue working toward those goals,” according to the governor’s office. Homan is also scheduled to meet with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth approved a Department of Homeland Security request Monday to use Fort Snelling, a decommissioned military base near the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, for immigration enforcement operations. The site will be used to house federal immigration agents, weapons, vehicles and aircraft, according to correspondence obtained by the San Francisco Chronicle.
Fort Snelling already hosts a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office and a DHS immigration enforcement and detention processing center. Customs and Border Protection will use land on a U.S. Army Reserve base there.
“This infrastructure support is critical for the efficient and secure command, control, and coordination of these operations, ensuring compliance with federal regulations, and advancing DHS’s public safety and national security objectives,” the email said.
