DOJ Used Trophy Arrests as Predicate to Infiltrate Minnesotas Anti-ICE Community Using Clearview AI and Undercover Agents

A discovery motion filed by defense attorney Kevin Riach in the case of Isaac Sant and 14 other defendants charged in Operation Metro Surge disclosed that Homeland Security Investigations ran undercover agents into activist meetings at churches, libraries, and union halls, entered encrypted Signal channels, logged attendees' license plates, and used Clearview AI facial recognition to build dossiers on protesters, including people never charged 123. The government produced at least two Clearview reports in Sant's case, one of which misidentified another man and pulled Facebook photos of his wife and child 2. HSI also used administrative subpoenas to obtain financial records from SEIU, CWA, Voices for Racial Justice, and Sunrise Movement 3. A diagram shown to the grand jury linked the alleged conspiracy to Direct Action MN and tied in SEIU, the AFL-CIO, the Minneapolis Federation of Educators, Monarca, the Democratic Socialists of America, and the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees, connections defense counsel said were made without supporting evidence 3. Filed documents show the surveillance operated under "Operation Puppet Master," opened January 28, and "Project Whipple Shield," opened in February, both authorized under President Trump's September National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 13; court records also reference a third program, "Project Keyhole," without further detail 3. HSI agent Desmond Garcia told a grand jury that no one was investigated for First Amendment activity and that a criminal predicate existed for every target 3, while Magistrate Judge David Schultz found in an April 28 hearing that HSI agent Richard Berger submitted affidavits claiming personal knowledge he did not have 1.