Attorney says ICE agent will turn himself in on charges from Operation Metro Surge

Jeff Day, The Minnesota Star Tribune on May 20, 2026

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MINNEAPOLIS — A St. Paul attorney representing the ICE agent charged with pointing his gun at motorists during Operation Metro Surge said Wednesday that his client will turn himself in after prosecutors issued a nationwide warrant for his arrest in April.

Criminal defense attorney Ryan Pacyga filed a certificate of representation for Gregory Donnell Morgan Jr., 35, of Temple Hills, Maryland, on Wednesday afternoon. Pacyga also filed a demand for disclosure of evidence.

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty charged Morgan with two felony counts of second-degree assault on April 16. Pacyga confirmed to the Minnesota Star Tribune that he is representing Morgan and that they are cooperating with the investigation.

In a statement he noted that Morgan “has dedicated his professional life to public service and law enforcement.”

“The allegations against Gregory Morgan arise from a brief, frightening, and highly stressful roadway encounter that happened in a matter of seconds during congested rush-hour traffic,” Pacyga said. “An encounter that Mr. Morgan did NOT initiate. It came on the heels of many days of fear that both citizens as well as law enforcement were experiencing during operations in our Twin Cities metro area.”

Hennepin County Attorney’s Office spokesperson Daniel Borgertpoepping said Wednesday that “Gregory Morgan’s defense attorney reached out to our office and we have had conversations with him.”

Charges allege that Morgan was driving a black unmarked SUV to the Bishop Henry Whipple Fderal Building at the end of his shift in February. Morgan was driving on the shoulder of Crosstown Hwy. 62 at the southern edge of Minneapolis, where Interstate 35W merges with Hwy. 62 near the Portland Avenue exit.

Another motorist was driving his car with a woman in the passenger seat on their way to the Mall of America. Traffic had slowed to a crawl. They saw a black SUV in the rearview mirror that was passing cars while driving on the shoulder of the road and swerved in the lane to try and block the SUV.

Moriarty said the alleged assault occurred after the car had returned to the legal lane, when the SUV, still on the shoulder, pulled alongside the car and Morgan pointed a gun at the two motorists. Prosecutors say that conduct forms the basis of the second-degree assault charges.

“Policy here would consider that some type of use of force,” Moriarty said before announcing the charges. “You can’t just point your gun.”

It was the first criminal charge to be levied against a federal agent for actions during Operation Metro Surge.

On Monday, Moriarty filed criminal charges and a nationwide arrest warrant for Christian J. Castro, the ICE agent who allegedly shot a Venezuelan immigrant in north Minneapolis during Operation Metro Surge and then lied about the circumstances that led to the shooting.

Castro stands charged with four counts of second-degree assault with a deadly weapon and one count of falsely reporting a crime.

Pacyga noted in his statement that the public so far has only heard the side of prosecutors and asked people to avoid rushing to conclusions about Morgan’s behavior.

“The defense looks forward to presenting the full context of this incident through the judicial process rather than through speculation, outrage, or incomplete narratives,” Pacyga said.