MINNEAPOLIS — The second fatal shooting this month of an American citizen in Minneapolis by at the hands of a federal agent has ratcheted up tensions in the city once again — and led to disputed accounts of what happened.
Alex Pretti, 37, an ICU nurse at a VA hospital, was fatally shot by a Border Patrol agent Saturday morning.
The Department of Homeland Security claims Pretti approached officers with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun and when officers attempted to disarm him, he “violently resisted.”
“Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots,” DHS said.
Local officials have disputed this characterization of events and criticized federal officials accusing them of rushing to “spin” the story.
The Minneapolis police chief said Pretti was a licensed handgun owner. Minnesota’s gun laws permit open carrying a handgun as long as the gun owner has a valid permit.
Videos of the confrontation showed the encounter between Pretti and officers. During the encounter, federal agents are seen spraying Pretti with a substance and pinning him to the ground before the shooting.
A witness in a federal court filing said Pretti was one of three people pepper-sprayed by agents and was attempting to help a woman up when he was tackled by the agents.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol Commander at Large Greg Bovino have claimed — without providing further evidence — that Pretti arrived at the scene “to inflict maximum damage on individuals.” Noem told reporters that his actions amounted to “domestic terrorism.”
“This individual who came with weapons and ammunition to stop a law enforcement operation of federal law enforcement officers committed an act of domestic terrorism, that’s the facts,” Noem said.
Despite being asked by reporters, neither Bovino nor Noem answered when asked if Pretti ever brandished the gun before the encounter.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz criticized federal officials saying, before any investigation has been completed, “the most powerful people in the federal government are spinning stories.”
State and local officials say they will conduct their own investigation into the shooting and repeated their calls for federal immigration agents to leave the city.
