A small, family-owned toy shop in Minnesota's Twin Cities is alleging that the Department of Homeland Security launched a sudden, unexpected audit of their business just hours after one of its owners publicly criticised Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations on national television. The owners of Mischief Toy Store in St. Paul claim this timing is not coincidental, suggesting it represents a form of political retaliation for their outspoken views.
"We've Never Been Hit With This Kind of Audit"
Dan Marshall, co-owner of Mischief Toy Store, expressed his shock and frustration to local media. "In 27 years as retailers in St Paul, we've never been hit with this kind of audit," he stated. "We just have five part-time employees, all Minnesota-born, so it's kind of a waste of their time to be targeting us." According to Marshall, two ICE agents personally delivered the audit notice to the store, requesting extensive documentation including federal employment forms, detailed payroll records, and comprehensive lists of both past and present employees.
The Critical Television Interview
The audit notice arrived mere hours after Marshall's daughter, Abigail Adelsheim-Marshall, participated in an interview with ABC News. During the broadcast, she discussed the store's community initiative of distributing free whistles to customers. This practice has been adopted by residents in various cities as a method to alert neighbours about approaching DHS agents and to express dissent towards ICE officers.
"Everyone is looking for anything they can do to help their community right now and the whistles are just one small thing they can do," Adelsheim-Marshall explained to the broadcaster. She estimated the store has distributed thousands of these whistles since the Thanksgiving period. More pointedly, she criticised the federal operation's impact, stating, "ICE is doing far more to hurt our community than immigrants ever have. I can't overstate how much our entire community is being terrorized by ICE right now." She added that "almost every customer" has reported negative experiences with DHS since the crackdown began.
Legal Response and Broader Context
In response to the audit, Dan Marshall confirmed the business has sought legal counsel and is receiving assistance from the American Civil Liberties Union. This incident occurs against a backdrop of significant tension between Minnesota state officials and the federal government. The Trump administration's operation in Minnesota, which intensified last month following viral allegations of fraud at federally funded day care centres, has spawned multiple lawsuits and investigations.
Last week, the Department of Justice initiated a lawsuit against the state, accusing it of employing illegal affirmative action strategies in government hiring. Concurrently, it launched an investigation into state leaders, including Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, probing whether they obstructed federal agents. Both officials have denied any wrongdoing. Governor Walz has accused the Trump administration of "weaponizing" the justice system against political opponents, labelling it "a dangerous, authoritarian tactic."
Minnesota, alongside several residents, has filed counter-suits against the administration, arguing that the tactics employed during the crackdown violate constitutional principles. The Independent's request for comment from the Department of Homeland Security on the toy store's allegations remains unanswered at this time.
