Federal prosecutors charged 15 people affiliated with Direct Action Minnesota and related activist groups with conspiracy to impede federal officers during Operation Metro Surge, the Trump administration's immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota. The defendants organized blockades around government buildings, including the Whipple federal building housing ICE headquarters, on January 23 and March 1. According to prosecutors, they used encrypted Signal chats and social media to coordinate surveillance of ICE agents, threw ice at federal vehicles, and used whistles and car horns to alert protesters to ICE detentions. Twelve defendants were arrested when charges were unsealed on June 16, 2026; one was already in custody and two remained at large. The defendants face charges including conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer, interstate stalking, assault on a federal officer, and destruction of government property, with potential sentences up to six years in prison. Attorneys from the National Lawyers Guild characterized the accusations as politically motivated.