Feds Checked These Suburbs' Flock Cameras For Immigration Cases: Report

TWIN CITIES, MN — Automated license plate reader data collected in Twin Cities suburbs, including Fridley, Eagan, South St. Paul, Crystal, Robbinsdale, Brooklyn Center, Hopkins and Shakopee, was searched by outside law enforcement agencies for immigration enforcement purposes last winter, according to a Star Tribune investigation published July 20.

The report found about 30 state, county, and federal agencies searched camera data in at least eight Twin Cities suburbs between November and March, including searches by the Mille Lacs County Sheriff's Office, which partners with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The Star Tribune reported that Fridley became the biggest access point, with outside agencies running more than 390,000 searches on its cameras in a single month before the department restricted access to Minnesota agencies only in February.

The findings have already prompted Brooklyn Park and Columbia Heights to cut ties with camera vendor Flock Safety altogether, while Shakopee now requires a warrant before sharing its data with outside agencies.

Read the full report at the Star Tribune.