Minnesota is a top destination for migrants accepting free tickets to leave New York

Minnesota has emerged as a top destination for migrants accepting free plane tickets to leave New York City, as homeless shelters there strain to house a record surge of asylum-seekers. Data released by the city shows that over roughly the past two years, 1,177 migrants have taken tickets to Minnesota — the fifth most popular destination. Illinois ranked first as a destination for 2,369 migrants, followed by other cities in New York state, and Texas and Florida.

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It's unclear how many of the migrants from New York have turned to shelters in Minnesota and how many found housing on their own; nor are their national origins known. But starting a year ago, Hennepin County's family shelters began overflowing as hundreds of Ecuadorian migrants arrived — some from New York and other cities, and many straight from the southern border. Now, more than half of the 491 families in Hennepin County's shelters are new arrivals, and the system is at 410% of normal capacity.

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Minnesota's number of Ecuadorians with pending immigration cases has shot up dramatically: from 2,735 in the fiscal year ending in September 2022 to 7,779 the year after. Now that number has climbed to 9,347. Minnesota's immigration court in Fort Snelling now has the third-highest concentration of Ecuadorians, after New York and New Jersey. Overall, a record 35,443 pending cases await the state's immigration court.

Minneapolis spokesman Casper Hill said the city has not received any information from New York City about reticketing to Minnesota. Minneapolis "has been actively engaged with State and County offices, other jurisdictions and nonprofit organizations on coordinated services for the influx of new migrants arriving in the Minneapolis area," he said in an email.

https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-top-destination-migrants-leave-new-york/600334570/