Standing Rock and Sisseton Wahpeton Tribal Members Arrested as ICE Terrorizes Minnesota
Native Americans are being detained throughout the United States illegally. Protests continue after the murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis.
By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, Jan. 25, 2026 Midnight Update
The Standing Rock Nation in North Dakota reports that a tribal member was detained by ICE and the tribe was able to secure their release in Minnesota. A Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate was also arrested by the FBI in Minneapolis on Saturday. Six tribes in South Dakota responded with a joint statement.
William LaFromboise, Dakota, was located safe, but bruised. LaFromboise was standing near the site where Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse, was murdered by federal agents in Minneapolis on Saturday. LaFromboise was among those present who was arrested. He was released without being charged with any crime.
Other witnesses standing near the site of the crime, the murder of Alex Pretti, say they fear for their lives, and have gone into hiding. Federal agents are reported hunting down the witnesses to arrest them.
The Rosebud Lakota Nation in South Dakota joined other tribes in banning ICE. The Oglala Lakota and Cheyenne River Lakota Nations have already banned ICE in South Dakota.
Rosebud Sioux Tribal President Kathleen Wooden Knife said today, "The RST Council passed a motion to join the other tribes in disallowing access to our reservations. An official copy of the approved resolution will be forthcoming."
"No agreement has been developed or ratified by the Tribal Council in respect to ICE training RST Officers in future endeavors," President Wooden Knife said.
South Dakota Tribes Issue Joint Statement on Sunday Night
The Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate, Spirit Lake Nation, Crow Creek Sioux Tribe, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, Yankton Sioux Tribe, and Rosebud Sioux Tribe have issued a joint statement in response to recent federal actions in Minnesota.
"Together, our Nations reaffirm our commitment to the safety, dignity, and rights of Indigenous Peoples and to upholding the federal trust and fiduciary responsibilities owed to Tribal Nations and citizens, both on and off our homelands. Our unity reflects our shared responsibility to protect our people."
The tribes extended their deep condolences to the families who have lost loved ones, expressed concern over the FBI's arrest of a Sisseton Wahpeton Dakota, and gave details on the contacts made with federal authorities. (See Joint Statement below.)
A Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate tribal member was kidnapped by ICE despite proof of tribal identification:Two family members of William LaFromboise report that he was detained by I.C.E. today (Saturday) in the Twin Cities, Minnesota area. According to the family, William had his tribal I.D. with him at the time of the detention but was still taken into custody.
They also stated that they contacted the tribe’s chairman, J. Garrett Renville, who has since reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for further information on the whereabouts of William. The family is currently awaiting a response and, at this time, does not know where William was taken and have not been able to communicate with him since.
(UPDATE: Jan. 25/12:21am — The family reported he is found and safe now, but did sustain some bruises.)
Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Nation: Lakota Arrested by ICE
Standing Rock Lakota Detained by ICE Released at 5 a.m. Today
Six Lakota/Dakota Tribal Nations Released Joint Statement on Sunday Night
Northern Cheyenne President Reports Back from Minneapolis
 |
| Minneapolis Indian Community. Photo courtesy Northern Cheyenne President Gene Small |
By Northern Cheyenne President Gene Small
DATE: January 25, 2026
TO: The Northern Cheyenne Nation
As President of the Northern Cheyenne Nation, I acknowledge and affirm the importance of Tribal Sovereignty and the rights of our Tribal Citizens. Any federal actions that treat Indigenous people as immigration targets undermine centuries of treaties and our legal status.
TO: The Northern Cheyenne Nation
As President of the Northern Cheyenne Nation, I acknowledge and affirm the importance of Tribal Sovereignty and the rights of our Tribal Citizens. Any federal actions that treat Indigenous people as immigration targets undermine centuries of treaties and our legal status.
I am aware of the increased ICE activity in Minnesota and the fear it has caused in our communities. I want to be clear: Northern Cheyenne Tribal members are citizens of sovereign Tribal Nations and of the United States. While in Minnesota attending the Government-To-Government Tribal Consultation in Prior Lake I was able to visit the Powwow Grounds Coffee shop on Franklin Street.
The coffee shop is considered a safe haven in the context of ICE activity and is monitored and protected by Mike Forcia who is the Chapter President of Twin Cities AIM. I had the chance to visit with him, and he assured me he would contact me, if he discovers any Northern Cheyenne Members being harassed or detained illegally. If there are any Northern Cheyenne Members in Minneapolis and need help with being harassed or profiled, please reach out to Mike and he will get ahold of me.
I also had the privilege to visit with Christine who works as an American Indian Community Specialist for the City of Minneapolis. Christine will also keep me informed on our Northern Cheyenne Relatives.
I appreciate the opportunity to engage in this dialogue with Mike and Christine who share my commitment to protecting our people, our lands, and our sovereign rights as a priority in the safety and dignity of our Indigenous people.
Nea’esemeno
Gene Small
President
Northern Cheyenne Tribe
The Ghost Flights
Today, Sunday, a deportation flight departed from the Mesa Gateway Airport in the Phoenix Valley in Arizona. The flight is deporting people to Russia and Iran. Many have been denied due process. Some face prison or death when they return to their home countries.
Today, Sunday, a deportation flight departed from the Mesa Gateway Airport in the Phoenix Valley in Arizona. The flight is deporting people to Russia and Iran. Many have been denied due process. Some face prison or death when they return to their home countries.
The flight is operated by Omni Airlines, a contract airline in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
In Minneapolis, the Ghost Flights leave without call numbers or names. Migrants are shackled from their wrists to their feet and hobble onto the planes that disappear them.
Leaving from Terminal 1 at the Minneapolis St Paul International Airport, the Ghost Flights secretly take migrants to deportation hubs in El Paso, Miami, Omaha, Alexandria, Louisiana, and elsewhere. From there, they are deported to other countries, including Guantanamo Bay and every region of the world, Asia, the Americas, and Africa, as shown on ICE Flight Tracker.
They are moms and workers. Many are legal residents.
Read more at Censored News:
U.S. Border Patrol Beats and Executes ICU Nurse in Minneapolis on Saturday
Oglala Lakota Nation Bans ICE, Rejects Federal Agreement
Cheyenne River Lakota Bans ICE in South Dakota
ICE Terrorizing Navajo, Pascua Yaqui and Absentee Shawnee in Arizona and Oklahoma
Copyright Censored News
.jpeg)
.jpeg)