Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty has landed in hot water for blasting federal immigration enforcement while her office’s lenient policies draw sharp scrutiny.
Moriarty sharply criticized the Trump administration’s deployment of nearly 100 ICE officers to Minneapolis-Saint Paul earlier this month, following a major fraud scandal tied to Somali individuals under Governor Tim Walz’s watch, as reported by the Daily Mail.
Her video response denied any issues with Somali gangs in the Twin Cities, claiming such accusations are baseless. “There are no roving gangs of Somali people in this community, harassing, threatening, doing anything to any of our community members,” Moriarty declared. If only public safety matched her confidence, as federal charges against a Somali national, previously released by her office, paint a grimmer picture.
Abdimahat Bille Mohamed, 28, secured probation instead of prison time through deals with Moriarty’s office, despite convictions for raping a 15-year-old girl in 2017 and another assault in 2024. Federal prosecutors now accuse him of kidnapping and raping a woman in September while out on that probation.
The complaint details at least five sexual assaults by Mohamed between 2017 and 2025, including gang rapes. This string of violence raises hard questions about why such a dangerous individual avoided serious consequences for so long.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi didn’t hold back, stating, “This horrific case illustrates how left-wing soft-on-crime policies and vetting failures put innocent people at dire risk.” Her words cut through the fog of excuses, pointing to a systemic failure in local justice that demands federal intervention.
Moriarty dismissed the federal charges against Mohamed as a “political stunt,” alleging the Department of Justice aims to harm the Somali community. She doubled down, insisting her office will not cooperate with ICE raids in any capacity.
“Yesterday’s DOJ press release is a clear attempt to politicize a sexual assault prosecution to inflict further harm on our entire Somali community,” she argued. Such rhetoric sidesteps accountability for her office’s role in releasing a repeat offender, deflecting to claims of bias instead of addressing victims’ suffering.
Her stance, refusing to assist federal efforts, signals a troubling prioritization of ideology over public safety. When local leaders wash their hands of responsibility, it’s no surprise that trust in the system erodes fast.
Moriarty’s track record only fuels the criticism, as she’s been labeled by detractors as overly harsh on law enforcement while soft on offenders. This year alone, she pursued murder charges against a state trooper for a justified shooting during a traffic stop gone wrong.
Contrast that with her handling of a serial Tesla vandal, a state employee caught keying six cars and causing $21,000 in damage, who walked away with a diversion program and kept his job. Such glaring inconsistencies suggest a justice system guided more by agenda than by fairness.
Her approach seems to punish those tasked with protecting the public while giving passes to those who harm it. This imbalance isn’t just frustrating; it’s a recipe for chaos in communities already on edge.
The ICE crackdown, spurred by a fraud scandal under Walz’s leadership, reflects a federal push to address crime and immigration concerns that local officials appear unwilling to tackle. Moriarty’s praise for the Somali community as making Minneapolis “one of the finest places to live” rings hollow against the backdrop of these violent allegations.
Victims of crime deserve more than platitudes or deflections about political motives. If local prosecutors won’t prioritize their safety, federal action becomes not just necessary but inevitable.
Moriarty’s defiance of ICE and dismissal of serious charges as mere politics reveal a disconnect from the real harm felt by those betrayed by a broken system. Minnesotans deserve leaders who face tough realities head-on, not ones who hide behind ideological shields.