American hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman, who recently captured Australia's attention with a massive donation to Bondi Junction hero Ahmed Al-Ahmed, has now contributed a significant sum to a controversial fundraiser in the United States.
A Second Major Donation Follows Bondi Hero Support
Just days after donating $99,999 to support al-Ahmed—the man who bravely tackled a terrorist suspect at Westfield Bondi—Ackman has given $10,000 to an online campaign for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer Jonathan Ross. Ross was the agent who fatally shot protester Renee Nicole Good in Minnesota last week.
Ackman confirmed his support on social media platform X, stating he is a firm believer in the legal principle of innocence until proven guilty. He explained he intended to also donate to a fundraiser for Good's family but found it had already closed.
"The whole situation is a tragedy," Ackman wrote. "An officer doing his best to do his job, and a protester who likely did not intend to kill the officer but whose actions in a split second led to her death."
Contradictory Accounts of a Fatal Shooting
The incident has ignited fierce debate and protests, with Minnesota's Democratic leaders and the administration of Republican President Donald Trump offering starkly different accounts.
State officials have called the shooting unjustified, citing bystander video which they claim shows Good's vehicle turning away from the agent when he fired. Conversely, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees ICE, maintains the agent acted in self-defence. They allege Good drove toward the agent after another officer approached her car and told her to get out.
The shooting occurred amidst heightened tensions, following the deployment of roughly 2000 federal officers to the Minneapolis-St Paul area—an operation DHS called its largest ever. Good was a volunteer with a community network that monitors ICE operations.
Protests and Escalating Federal-State Tensions
The fallout has been significant. Tens of thousands of people have marched in recent days to decry Good's death, deepening the rift between the federal administration and state leaders.
Federal-state tensions escalated further when, the day after the Minnesota protests, a US Border Patrol agent in Portland, Oregon, shot and wounded a man and woman in their car following an attempted vehicle stop.
Ackman, reportedly worth over $9 billion, concluded his statement with a call for unity: "Our country is stronger if we work together to resolve the complex issues that are tearing us apart." His dual donations, however, highlight the deeply polarising nature of the events on both sides of the Pacific.
