Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino is expected to leave Minneapolis on Tuesday, a White House official and another Trump administration official familiar with the decision told NBC News.
The administration official and a law enforcement official said U.S. Customs and Border Protection also plans to reduce the number of agents in Minneapolis this week. The size of the reduction is still under discussion, they said.
Bovino had emerged as the public face of the Department of Homeland Security’s Minneapolis operation, dubbed “Operation Metro Surge.” CNN first reported the news of his departure.
The decision comes after weeks of tense encounters between immigration agents and demonstrators and the shooting deaths by Homeland Security officers of two Americans, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Jeffrey Pretti.
President Donald Trump and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz spoke by phone Monday, a call both men praised. Walz said in a statement that Trump would look into reducing the number of federal agents in Minneapolis.
Trump also said Monday that his border “czar,” Tom Homan, would travel to Minnesota this week. While Bovino will continue as a leader of Border Patrol, Homan will take over as the main point of contact on the ground, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
Leavitt downplayed any friction among top administration officials when she was asked whether the leadership change signaled Trump was dissatisfied with how the shooting of Pretti had been handled.
“Mr. Homan is doing an exceptional job, and he has been working with Secretary [Kristi] Noem and President Trump over the course of the last year,” she said. “Secretary Noem still has the utmost confidence and trust of the president of the United States.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Trump has not labeled Alex Pretti a domestic terrorist and will let the investigation determine the facts.
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