MINNEAPOLIS — A right-wing provocateur who was pardoned for crimes tied to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol says he was stabbed during a pro-ICE rally outside Minneapolis City Hall on Saturday.
“I just got stabbed…today in Minnesota,” Jake Lang said in a post on X, alleging he was attacked by a counterprotester. NBC News could not independently verify his claim, and Lang did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Lang, a 30-year-old conservative influencer who served four years in prison for crimes in connection to Jan. 6, was hosting an anti-immigration demonstration with a small group of pro-ICE supporters when hundreds of counterprotesters converged on the scene.
The anti-ICE demonstrators and a group of reporters surrounded Lang and his associates, backing them in a recessed window along the City Hall building.
Counterprotesters could also be seen hurling water balloons at Lang, leaving him soaked in water in the freezing cold. They also threw snowballs at other pro-ICE protesters, soaking them as temperatures dropped toward zero degrees Fahrenheit.
“Please stop,” Lang repeated to one protester who appeared to be grabbing his legs.
The heated confrontation comes as pressure continues to build in the Twin Cities following the killing of Renee Nicole Good this month by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer.
Lang had promised to burn a Quran at the planned demonstration, but did not appear to do so. His group blasted music including the song “Ice Ice Baby.” However, Lang, who is from New York and is running for the U.S. Senate seat in Florida vacated by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, struggled to be heard over counterprotesters.
Anti-ICE counterprotestors shouted profanities and waved banners reading, “Minnesota Nice, Not ICE,” and, “ICE out now!”
“Hey, Minnesota what do we say?” an anti-ICE protester shouted through a megaphone. “F— Nazis every day.”
Gary, a pro-ICE demonstrator who did not want his last name published, said he came out to Saturday’s “March Against Minnesota Fraud” rally motivated by anger over fraud scandals that have drawn renewed scrutiny in Minnesota, including a high-profile investigation focused in social services programs involving a number of individuals of Somali descent.
Local officials had reportedly expressed concerns that the rally could lead to harassment of Somalis in the community.
Gary said he supports increased immigration operations in the area.
“I’m 100% on board with ICE in every way. If I could join them, I would.”
When asked about reports of U.S. citizens stopped by federal officers during traffic stops, Gary said he supports agents questioning and stopping people.
“I got all my identification,” he said. “You know, I learned my lesson a long time ago. If you comply with law enforcement, you’ll be just fine.”
The scene was calmer across the street.
Sara Steck, 60, said she was braving the cold temperature to protest Lang’s demonstration because “this city is built on immigrants.”
Sara Steck, 60, said she was braving the cold temperature to protest Lang’s demonstration because “this city is built on immigrants.”Matt Lavietes / NBC News
“This is just everything I firmly believe in, that people need to stand together and not push people out that don’t look like us or sound like us,” she said. “It’s bigger than just Renee Good.”
Despite Minnesota’s challenges, Steck said she remains proud of her home state.
“They always call this a fly-over state. And it’s like, people used to think we lived in igloos and it’s always cold there and it’s not a great place,” she said. “Yes, it is really cold, and look at how hardy we are. But we will fight for this beautiful state that we have and all of the people that are in it.”
Isabelle Brourman, a courtroom sketch artist who works in federal and immigration court, stood nearby sketching the scene.
“I think right now, it’s just sort of like manufactured chaos,” she said. “People have natural emotions about this, and they’re strong.”
