DHS officers posed as concerned citizens, joining Signal groups and taking photos of community meetings
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Newly disclosed records reveal how undercover federal agents posed as concerned community members to spy on residents and activists who opposed Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) crackdown in Minnesota.
Internal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) files, disclosed in federal court and reviewed by the Guardian, document the actions of several undercover agents, including one who went by the username “peanutbutterjelly” in Signal chats with activists. The documents show that the officer kept records of Signal conversations, screenshotting chats about protest plans, and offering to help with fundraising efforts and volunteer recruitment.
Another undercover agent took photos at demonstrations and protest planning meetings, including of demonstrators in frog costumes, a poster that mocked JD Vance with heavy eye makeup, and a protester writing an anti-ICE message in chalk. Other DHS agents trailed a protester as he left his home, got coffee and went to a church.
The records were released as part of the Department of Justice’s ongoing prosecution of 15 Minneapolis protesters, accused of being part of a “conspiracy” to “impede” ICE.
A tranche of internal DHS files disclosed in the case earlier this month revealed DHS extensively spied on prominent leftwing groups and protesters as part of its investigation into anti-ICE activity. DHS called the investigation “Operation Puppet Master”, the files showed, sending undercover agents to community meetings, infiltrating Signal chats and obtaining financial records of left-leaning non-profit organizations and unions.
The surveillance escalated during widespread anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis after the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in January. Civil rights groups and the protesters’ attorneys have argued the government was surveilling people without justification and is criminalizing lawful protest activity.
DHS and the DoJ did not immediately respond to inquiries on Tuesday. In response to questions about the previous records released in the case, a DHS spokesperson said earlier this month that HSI, its branch that carried out the investigations, “does not comment on the existence or status of specific on-going investigations, nor on investigative methods”.
Undercover agent 9843, who went by the name “peanutbutterjelly” in the Signal chats of organizers, worked for homeland security investigations, the investigative arm of ICE, records show. In December 2025, the agent was deployed to “participate” in virtual and in-person meetings, records show. The agent’s objective was to “gather intelligence regarding any organized networks of conspirators – operating online and in person – who may be providing material support to violent opportunists and individuals engaged in impeding federal law enforcement”, DHS summarized in a February report.
The undercover agent attended a virtual “ICE watch” training on 3 December during which community members discussed how to monitor ICE officers’ activities. Organizers at the meeting “urged participants to observe nonviolently and obey law enforcement commands”, DHS said. The agent attended another “legal observer” training in person four days later, reporting there were no signs of “threats to public safety”.
The undercover agent was not just a passive observer in activist groups. In December, the agent got involved with advocates organizing protests at hotels where ICE agents were believed to be staying, with the agent offering to “assist with verifying the locations”, records show. In one Signal chat, the agent wrote: “also v interested in the financial organizing piece (I like numbers and data) & marrying that together with propaganda so would love to work on both sides of these groups!!” It was unclear what the agent was referencing. In other messages, the agent also offered to help with fundraising, hanging posters and designing flyers.
A DHS report labeled “Images from UCA [undercover agent] 9843’s phone” described photos and screenshots taken by the agent. The agent screenshotted a message about finding housing for members with Veterans for Peace, an advocacy group. The agent also kept records of messages about a march planned by a rightwing influencer and discussions of a counter demonstration. The agent further screenshotted a selfie one protester sent in a Signal group and recorded chats about signing up for an “ICE Out of MN” event.
The files released Tuesday also included summaries of DHS interviews with two other undercover agents who attended a January community meeting at a library hosted by Sunrise Movement, a national non-profit focused on the climate crisis and involved in protesting ICE. One agent recounted organizers giving a “historical breakdown of the Sunrise Movement” and then breaking into smaller groups discussing protest strategies.
“They were pretty big on peaceful protest,” the undercover agent summarized, according to a transcript of their interview with another DHS agent. A report disclaimer noted the transcript was produced by AI.
