BY Benjamin ClarkFebruary 28, 2026
4 weeks ago
BY 
 | February 28, 2026
4 weeks ago

DOJ charges 30 more in storming of Minnesota church, 25 already arrested

The Department of Justice unsealed an indictment charging roughly 30 more people who took part in storming Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, in January. Attorney General Pam Bondi revealed the action in a post on X, confirming that federal agents had already arrested 25 of the newly charged individuals.

The indictment accuses all 39 people, including the original nine defendants, of violating two civil rights laws. No additional criminal charges were added beyond those already filed, but the scope of the prosecution just expanded dramatically.

Bondi made the stakes plain:

"YOU CANNOT ATTACK A HOUSE OF WORSHIP. If you do so, you cannot hide from us — we will find you, arrest you, and prosecute you."

The Expanding Dragnet

Bondi announced the arrests with characteristic directness:

"At my direction, federal agents have already arrested 25 of them, with more to come throughout the day."

That language matters. "With more to come" is not a press release pleasantry. It's a warning to anyone who participated and hasn't yet heard a knock on their door. The DOJ is treating this as an ongoing investigation, not a closed case with a few symbolic charges tacked on.

The original nine defendants were just the beginning. Thirty more names on an indictment suggest investigators spent weeks combing through video footage, social media posts, and witness accounts to identify every person who crossed that threshold. In an era when activists routinely livestream their own crimes, the evidence trail tends to be generous, as Breitbart reports.

The FACE Act Comes Full Circle

The DOJ revealed it was looking into potential violations of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act and the so-called "KKK Act." That combination carries real weight and a certain poetic justice.

Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Harmeet Dhillon explained the legal toolkit during an interview on The Benny Show:

"The Biden DOJ used the Klan Act conspiracy charges tacked onto the FACE Act in the case of protests outside abortion clinics to bring much longer sentences."

For years, the FACE Act served as the Biden administration's weapon of choice against pro-life demonstrators. Data indicates 97 percent of FACE Act cases since the law's inception in 1994 have been against pro-life advocates. Grandmothers who prayed outside abortion clinics faced federal prosecution. Peaceful protesters who blocked doorways got the full weight of federal conspiracy charges.

Now the same statute applies to a mob that stormed a house of worship. The left built this legal infrastructure. They sharpened these tools. They established the precedent that interfering with access to a protected facility is a federal crime worthy of aggressive prosecution. They just never imagined those tools would be pointed back at their own side.

Dhillon Signals a Deeper Investigation

Dhillon's comments went beyond the charges already filed. She raised questions that suggest investigators are looking upstream:

"So, there are a number of tools available to us. Who funded this? What other crimes may have occurred? Was there a use of the wires or the mail in preparing for this event?"

Those are not idle rhetorical questions from a cable news guest. That's the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights telegraphing the direction of a federal investigation. "Who funded this?" is the question that turns a mob action into an organized conspiracy case. Wire fraud, mail fraud, and conspiracy charges carry their own sentencing enhancements. If organizers used email, social media, or any electronic communication to plan and coordinate the storming of a church, the legal exposure multiplies.

The anti-ICE protest movement has long operated with a level of coordination that suggests more than spontaneous outrage. Someone rented buses. Someone printed signs. Someone chose that church on that day. Federal investigators now appear interested in finding out who.

The Don Lemon Factor

Former CNN host Don Lemon recorded a live YouTube video of anti-ICE protesters storming Cities Church. He was arrested in January and charged with federal civil rights crimes. Lemon clarified that he was "not part of the group" and was merely "photographing."

That defense will get its day in court. But it's worth noting that Lemon wasn't reporting for a news organization. He wasn't credentialed. He was a former cable host with a YouTube channel who happened to be livestreaming inside a church under siege. Federal prosecutors evidently found the journalist's defense unpersuasive enough to file charges.

A Standard Finally Applied Equally

The broader pattern here is one that conservatives have watched develop for years. Protests that target institutions favored by the left receive the full protection of sympathetic media coverage and prosecutorial restraint. Protests that inconvenience the left's preferred causes get the FACE Act, the Klan Act, and the FBI.

What's changed is not the law. It's the willingness to apply it without ideological favoritism. A church is a protected institution. The people inside it have civil rights. A mob that forces its way into disrupting worship and intimidating congregants has committed a federal offense, regardless of whether the mob believes its cause is righteous.

Thirty more indictments. Twenty-five arrests and counting. An investigation into the organizers and the money. For a movement that grew accustomed to consequence-free disruption, the rules just changed.

Written by: Benjamin Clark
Benjamin Clark delivers clear, concise reporting on today’s biggest political stories.

NATIONAL NEWS

SEE ALL

Illegal alien who confessed to raping 14-year-old boy promised just six months behind bars

A 31-year-old illegal immigrant from Colombia who confessed to second-degree rape of a 14-year-old boy inside a New York City bodega was promised a sentence…
44 minutes ago
 • By Brenden Ackerman

Watchdog complaint alleges AOC spent nearly $19K in campaign funds on ketamine therapy

A government watchdog group filed a complaint Friday alleging that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez used nearly $19,000 in campaign funds for personal expenses, including ketamine therapy,…
46 minutes ago
 • By Brenden Ackerman

Pentagon prepares ground operations in Iran as thousands of Marines deploy to the Middle East

The Pentagon is preparing for ground operations inside Iran that could stretch on for weeks, according to officials, as thousands of U.S. Marines pour into…
47 minutes ago
 • By Brenden Ackerman

JD Vance says he thinks UFOs are demons, vows to use classified access to investigate

Vice President JD Vance dropped a fascinating admission during an appearance on "The Benny Show" with host Benny Johnson: he doesn't believe unidentified aerial phenomena…
1 day ago
 • By Brenden Ackerman

Finland's Supreme Court convicts parliamentarian Päivi Räsänen for a decades-old church pamphlet on marriage

Finland's Supreme Court has found parliamentarian Päivi Räsänen guilty of "hate speech" for a church pamphlet she published more than two decades ago expressing her…
1 day ago
 • By Brenden Ackerman

DON'T WAIT.

We publish the objective news, period. If you want the facts, then sign up below and join our movement for objective news:

    LATEST NEWS

    Newsletter

    Get news from American Digest in your inbox.

      By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: American Digest, 3000 S. Hulen Street, Ste 124 #1064, Fort Worth, TX, 76109, US, http://americandigest.com. You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact.
      Christian News Alerts is a conservative Christian publication. Share our articles to help spread the word.
      © 2026 - CHRISTIAN NEWS ALERTS - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
      magnifier