Minneapolis woman dragged from car and detained by federal agents sues government

A Minneapolis woman captured in a viral video of federal immigration agents dragging her from her car during Operation Metro Surge last winter has sued the federal government, alleging they used excessive force and violated her constitutional rights. Aliya Rahman, a Bangladeshi-American who is autistic, alleges that agents committed eight different crimes under the Federal Tort Claims Act. That includes assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress, battery, false imprisonment and more. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Rahman initiated the legal action in April when she filed what’s known as a tort claim against the government. Because it never responded in the six-month window after the tort claim, she can now pursue the lawsuit. In an interview after the tort claim was filed, Rahman’s attorney Chisato Kimura described the videos and the experiences her client went through as “horrific.” Advertisement “What happened to her should have never happened to anyone, regardless of citizenship, let alone someone who’s living their day-to-day life and literally trying to go to a doctor’s appointment,” Kimura said. Rahman, who sustained a traumatic brain injury in 2024, was detained on Jan. 13 after she happened upon a federal agent blockade along Park Avenue in south Minneapolis while she was driving to a doctor’s appointment. Agents had closed the street that morning to make an immigration arrest, and were not letting protesters or vehicles through. After minutes of yelling between the agents and Rahman, who came to a stop at the blockade, the agents shattered Rahman’s window and cut her seat belt off with a knife before others pulled her out onto the pavement and handcuffed her. Four agents picked Rahman up by each of her limbs to carry her face down to an unmarked vehicle. The agents pulling her arms injured her shoulders, the lawsuit alleges.