Minneapolis, Minnesota – Francisco Estrada de Haro, a Minneapolis restaurant owner, was federally charged on July 17, 2025, with illegal re-entry into the United States after having been previously deported. This development follows a federal raid on his restaurant as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into alleged ties to a transnational criminal organization.
According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota, Estrada de Haro, 45, a citizen of Mexico, had been deported from the United States on three prior occasions: in 2005, 2007, and 2011. Law enforcement encountered him during the execution of a search warrant at his Minneapolis restaurant.
The Star Tribune reported on July 19, 2025, that Estrada de Haro, owner of two Twin Cities Mexican restaurants, was held in ICE custody for weeks before being charged federally. The newspaper highlighted his restaurant's targeting due to "alleged criminal ties" and his charge for illegally re-entering the country in September 2020 after a previous deportation.
However, Liz Collin, a media figure associated with Alpha News and former WCCO reporter, criticized the Star Tribune's initial coverage. In a tweet, Collin stated, > "The @StarTribune first attempts a sob story for this “restaurant owner.” Left out of their first story? That he’d been removed from the country 3 times, was charged with assault, drug possession, fleeing police, DWI, etc."
While the U.S. Attorney's Office confirmed Estrada de Haro's three prior deportations, the specific past charges of assault, drug possession, fleeing police, and DWI, as alleged by Collin to have been omitted, were not detailed in the Star Tribune's initial report on the federal charge. Collin, known for her work with the conservative media outlet Alpha News, has previously been involved in public disputes regarding journalistic coverage.
The federal investigation involving Estrada de Haro's restaurant is a multi-agency effort, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Minneapolis Police Department, and the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office. The case underscores ongoing efforts to address illegal re-entry and alleged criminal activities linked to transnational organizations.