{"id":39094,"date":"2026-01-22T23:56:07","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T23:56:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news-vm.com\/?p=39094"},"modified":"2026-01-22T23:56:07","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T23:56:07","slug":"after-being-held-by-ice-without-a-warrant-minnesota-man-shares-his-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news-vm.com\/?p=39094","title":{"rendered":"After Being Held by ICE Without a Warrant, Minnesota Man Shares His Story"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>US Citizen Grandfather Detained by ICE in Freezing Cold Sparks Outrage<\/p><div class=\"dwtid69f4fbca1cd8d\" ><div style=\"width:100%; max-width:1200px; margin:0 auto;\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/bolt-casino.com?r=0BFDBF1283\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\n    <img \n      src=\"https:\/\/news-vm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/f8693ebb-2018-480f-a2f7-0096810c07f0.jpg\" \n      alt=\"200% Deposit Bonus + 10% Cashback\" \n      style=\"width:100%; height:auto; display:block; border-radius:8px; cursor:pointer;\"\n    \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/div><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 1201px) {\r\n.dwtid69f4fbca1cd8d {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 993px) and (max-width: 1200px) {\r\n.dwtid69f4fbca1cd8d {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 769px) and (max-width: 992px) {\r\n.dwtid69f4fbca1cd8d {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 768px) {\r\n.dwtid69f4fbca1cd8d {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (max-width: 767px) {\r\n.dwtid69f4fbca1cd8d {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n<\/style>\r\n\n<div class=\"google-auto-placed ap_container\">\n<p>A shocking ICE raid in St. Paul, Minnesota, has left a 56-year-old US citizen and grandfather, ChongLy \u201cScott\u201d Thao, and his family shaken. Thao was detained in his own home while wearing only underwear, a blanket, and sandals, in freezing 12-degree weather, sparking outrage across the community.<\/p>\n<div class=\"autors-widget\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<p>On Sunday, masked ICE agents forced their way into Thao\u2019s house, guns drawn, while his daughter-in-law witnessed the terrifying scene. \u201cI was shaking,\u201d Thao told AP. \u201cThey didn\u2019t show any warrant; they just broke down the door.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"google-auto-placed ap_container\">\n<p>As his 4-year-old grandson watched, crying, Thao was taken outside, wrapped only in the child\u2019s blanket. \u201cIt was embarrassing,\u201d he recalled to NBC. Agents then placed him in a vehicle and drove him to an isolated location for a photo, leaving him fearing for his safety.<\/p>\n<div class=\"google-auto-placed ap_container\">\n<p>After realizing he was a US citizen with no criminal record, ICE returned Thao to his home\u2014but left without an apology for the traumatic raid or for breaking down his door.<\/p>\n<p>Community Reaction<\/p>\n<p>The raid has drawn swift backlash from Minneapolis and St. Paul residents and officials. Mayor Kaohly Her criticized ICE\u2019s approach, stating, \u201cThey\u2019re not going after hardened criminals. They\u2019re going after anyone and everyone in their path. It is unacceptable and un-American.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Department of Homeland Security defended the operation as a \u201ctargeted operation,\u201d claiming they were seeking two convicted sex offenders living at the same address. DHS said Thao matched descriptions and initially refused identification checks.<\/p>\n<p>Thao\u2019s family strongly disputes the claim, arguing that DHS is attempting to justify the incident with \u201cfalse and misleading claims.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The incident has reignited debates over warrantless raids, the safety of US citizens during ICE operations, and the emotional toll these actions place on families.<\/p>\n<div class=\"google-auto-placed ap_container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>US Citizen Grandfather Detained by ICE in Freezing Cold Sparks Outrage A shocking ICE raid in St. Paul, Minnesota, has left a 56-year-old US citizen and grandfather, ChongLy \u201cScott\u201d Thao, and his family shaken. Thao was detained in his own home while wearing only underwear, a blanket, and sandals, in freezing 12-degree weather, sparking outrage&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":39095,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"default","_kad_post_title":"default","_kad_post_layout":"default","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"default","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"default","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39094","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>After Being Held by ICE Without a Warrant, Minnesota Man Shares His Story - VM News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/news-vm.com\/?p=39094\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"After Being Held by ICE Without a Warrant, Minnesota Man Shares His Story - VM News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"US Citizen Grandfather Detained by ICE in Freezing Cold Sparks Outrage A shocking ICE raid in St. Paul, Minnesota, has left a 56-year-old US citizen and grandfather, ChongLy \u201cScott\u201d Thao, and his family shaken. 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