By Trendsetter Tribune 
In a story that perfectly captures the current political heat in Minnesota, a pardoned Jan. 6 rioter turned Florida Senate candidate, Jake Lang, was arrested Thursday for vandalizing a 20-foot ice sculpture on the steps of the Minnesota State Capitol.
The sculpture, which spelled out “PROSECUTE ICE,” was intended to be a silent protest against the federal government’s recent immigration surge in the Twin Cities.
The Vandalism and the Video
Lang, 31, posted a video of himself dressed in military-style camouflage kicking down the letters of the installation. In the video, he addresses President Trump directly, stating, “President Trump, we support you… our country was made for Americans, not for Somalis.”
- The Damage: Lang kicked out the six middle letters of the word “PROSECUTE,” leaving the sculpture to read “PRO ICE.”
- The Arrest: State Patrol observed the act on security cameras and pulled Lang over a short distance away. He was booked into the Ramsey County Jail on suspicion of criminal damage to property, which he claims is a felony charge due to over $6,000 in damages.
Why the Sculpture Was There
The ice installation was created by Common Defense, a veteran-led organization. The group is protesting what they call “Operation Metro Surge,” a heavy-duty ICE crackdown in Minnesota that has turned the state into a national flashpoint.
Veterans at the unveiling highlighted two recent controversial killings by federal agents in Minneapolis:
- Alex Pretti: A 37-year-old VA nurse who was shot and killed by federal agents in January.
- Renee Good: A mother of three who was also fatally shot during an enforcement operation earlier this year.
“I gave eight years of my life in service to this country,” said Jacob Thomas, a veteran with Common Defense. “For a Jan. 6 insurrectionist to destroy our display is an attack on the First Amendment.”
A “Crusader March” and Local Tension
This wasn’t Lang’s first run-in with the city. In mid-January, he attempted to lead what he called a “Crusader March” on “Little Somalia”—the Minneapolis neighborhood home to the state’s large Somali population.
During that event, Lang was chased off by a much larger group of counter-protesters and reportedly targeted with water balloons in sub-freezing temperatures. Despite his recent arrest, Lang has been calling on supporters to join him for another rally at the State Capitol this Saturday.