Minneapolis shooting of U.S. citizen sparks national outcry over ICE tactics

Trump administration officials on Sunday defended the fatal shooting of a U.S. citizen by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis, despite video evidence that contradicts their account and mounting tensions between federal officers and local authorities.

As residents gathered in freezing temperatures and snowfall around a makeshift memorial of flowers and candles for 37-year-old Alex Pretti, administration officials said Pretti assaulted agents, forcing them to shoot in self-defense. Bystander videos, however, appear to tell a different story.

Pretti is the second American citizen killed this month by federal immigration officers in Minneapolis, where President Donald Trump has deployed thousands of armed, masked agents as part of an unprecedented deportation operation.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz again called on Trump to withdraw federal agents from the state, which has asked a federal judge to curb what it describes as unconstitutional overreach.

“The victims are Border Patrol agents,” Gregory Bovino, a senior Border Patrol official, said on CNN’s State of the Union. That stance, echoed by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and other administration officials, sparked outrage among local Democratic leaders, law enforcement officials, and Democrats in Congress.

They pointed to videos showing Pretti holding only a cellphone before agents tackled him and ultimately shot him at close range.

Protests have grown steadily in recent weeks, with residents confronting immigration agents in icy streets, blowing whistles and chanting. Thousands again marched through Minneapolis on Sunday, waving signs reading “ICE OUT!”

Video footage of Saturday’s shooting shows Pretti holding a phone as he attempts to help other protesters who had been shoved to the ground by agents. As an agent pushes one woman aside and knocks another down, Pretti steps between them and raises his arm to shield himself before being pepper-sprayed.

Several agents then restrain Pretti, forcing him onto his hands and knees. During the struggle, someone can be heard shouting what sounds like a warning about a gun. One agent appears to remove a handgun from Pretti’s waistband and step away. Moments later, another agent points a firearm at Pretti’s back and fires four shots in rapid succession. Additional shots are heard as a second agent appears to fire.

Darius Reeves, former head of ICE’s Baltimore field office, told Reuters the agents’ apparent lack of communication was alarming. “It’s clear no one is communicating, based on how that team responded,” he said.

Minnesota officials say Pretti had a valid permit to carry a concealed firearm, a right affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said on CBS’s Face the Nation that “the videos speak for themselves,” adding he had seen no evidence that Pretti brandished a weapon.

Tensions were already high following the January 7 killing of U.S. citizen Renee Good by a federal immigration agent. Administration officials said Good attempted to ram the agent with her vehicle, but bystander video suggests she was trying to drive away. State and local authorities are investigating whether the agent violated Minnesota law. The Justice Department has withdrawn cooperation from that probe, prompting at least a dozen federal prosecutors to resign.

At Minnesota’s request, a federal judge on Saturday ordered the Trump administration not to destroy or alter evidence related to Pretti’s killing.

Executives from major Minnesota companies, including Target, Cargill, and Best Buy, released a joint letter calling for the “immediate de-escalation of tensions” and greater cooperation among government agencies.

Former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton also condemned the killings. Clinton accused the administration of lying, while Obama said American values are under assault. “This has to stop,” Barack and Michelle Obama said in a joint statement.

Pretti worked as an intensive care nurse at a Veterans Affairs hospital. On Sunday, more than 200 healthcare workers gathered at the site of his death, leaving flowers and tributes. One colleague, speaking anonymously through tears, said, “He was caring and kind. None of this makes any sense.”

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said his 31-year-old son, also a nurse, told him colleagues across the healthcare system were devastated. “They took this hit to one of their own very personally,” Ellison said.

Trump has defended the immigration operations as necessary to combat crime and enforce federal law.