Attorney Mark A. Cangemi of Igbanugo Partners Int'l Law Firm P.L.L.C

Minneapolis, Minnesota Office
P 612.746.0371
E mcangemi@IgbanugoLaw.com

Mark A. Cangemi is a partner with Igbanugo Partners Int’l Law Firm, PLLC. He is admitted to practice in the State of Minnesota and the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota. He graduated cum laude with a Juris Doctor degree from William Mitchell College of Law in 1992. Mr. Cangemi focuses on business immigration law, corporate compliance, and corporate defense in administrative and criminal enforcement matters related to U.S. immigration laws. He represents corporations and organizations in agency investigations by U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (CIS).

Prior to joining Igbanugo Partners, Mr. Cangemi served the U.S. government for 34 years in an immigration law enforcement capacity, holding various positions in the U.S. Department of Justice, the former Immigration & Naturalization Service (INS), and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE). Mr. Cangemi first joined the INS in 1973 as an Immigration Inspector in Port Huron, Michigan, where he remained until 1975. He then served as an INS Criminal Investigator in Chicago, Illinois from 1975 until 1985, primarily as an Anti-smuggling Agent. For his investigative work in the high-profile alien smuggling case, “Operation Gypsy,” Mr. Cangemi received the prestigious Newton-Azrak award, and was nominated for the Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement.

From 1985 to 1988, Mr. Cangemi was stationed in Phoenix, Arizona as an Anti-smuggling Agent and was later promoted to Assistant District Director for Anti-smuggling. In 1988, he was promoted to Assistant District Director for Investigations of the St. Paul, Minnesota INS office. In this capacity, Mr. Cangemi managed the expansion of the office to include duty posts in Fargo, North Dakota and Sioux Falls and Rapid City, South Dakota. He was also assigned to internal affairs casework and was a member of the Internal Audit Inspection Team.

In March 2003, after the legacy INS was absorbed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Mr. Cangemi became ICE’s Special Agent in Charge of the Twin Cities Area of Responsibility, which includes the five states of Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Nebraska. The Twin Cities Area of Responsibility involves operational support for ports of entry at the U.S.-Canada border along North Dakota and Minnesota, the seaport in Duluth, Minnesota, and the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, which is rated the 7 th most active airport in the world for takeoffs and landings, and the 15 th most active for passenger traffic.

As Special Agent in Charge, Mr. Cangemi coordinated overall enforcement of 400 immigration and customs statutes and oversaw Resident Agents in Charge across the five states. He coordinated investigative and operational law enforcement activities related to document vending, drug smuggling, money laundering, commercial fraud, identity and benefits fraud, national security, strategic crimes, human trafficking, alien smuggling, human rights, and cyber crimes. He also coordinated activities among the four operational divisions within ICE (Investigations, Detention and Removal, Intelligence, and the Federal Protective Service) and managed ICE’s participation in investigations involving other federal, state and local law enforcement.

Mr. Cangemi is a frequent presenter on immigration, enforcement, terrorism and related topics at Minnesota Bar CLE training, various continuing legal education programs, and local universities and colleges such as William Mitchell College of Law, Hamline University School of Law, and the University of Minnesota. He was a guest lecturer and adjunct professor in immigration enforcement procedures and trial skills at William Mitchell College of Law from 1999 to 2005. He has provided classified briefings to senior agency leadership and elected officials, including Senator Norm Coleman, former Senator Mark Dayton, and Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, with whom he has participated in community outreach programs. He has also conducted numerous seminars within the larger business community related to the rights and responsibilities of business leadership in dealing with immigration and related requirements.

Mr. Cangemi served on the Executive Committee of the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF). He frequently made training presentations to various state and local policing groups on interaction between agencies and federal immigration authorities to enhance policing efforts and public affairs. He has provided tailored training sessions and community round tables to special interest groups, non-government agencies, lawyer associations and law enforcement agencies.

Mr. Cangemi has also designed and revised multiple office matrices that included the number and position classifications for personnel in 14 offices, work product and form flow, file control and supervision, and productivity oversight. He designed and implemented local policies and supported national priorities, and assisted Headquarters in Washington D.C. during extended details in defining national priorities and initiatives regarding personnel issues and enforcement challenges. A proven leader in identifying challenges and creating innovative solutions, Mr. Cangemi is truly a nationally recognized expert in immigration enforcement and border security.