LOS ANGELES, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- A Minneapolis resident was fatally shot by U.S. federal law enforcement agents on Saturday, marking the third shooting and the second fatal incident this month involving federal immigration agents in the largest city of the U.S. state of Minnesota.
The death of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse and U.S. citizen, prompted protests and raised tensions in the community.
WHAT HAPPENED?
According to a statement from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the shooting occurred during an enforcement operation in which federal officers encountered an individual believed to be armed.
"As DHS law enforcement officers were conducting a targeted operation in Minneapolis against an illegal alien wanted for violent assault, an individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun," said the statement.
"The officers attempted to disarm the suspect, but the armed suspect violently resisted," it added. "Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots."
However, bystander videos posted online appear to contradict the federal account. The footage appears to show Pretti holding a mobile phone as he attempted to help a woman who had been pushed to the ground by federal agents.
Pretti was then pepper-sprayed and wrestled to the ground as at least six agents quickly gathered around. According to video analyses by Reuters and CNN, one of the agents removed a handgun from Pretti's waistband area seconds before multiple shots were fired.
In a family statement, Pretti's relatives called the federal claims "reprehensible and disgusting," saying the videos showed their son with "his phone in his right hand and his empty left hand raised above his head."
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara confirmed that Pretti, who had previously been reported as carrying no identification, was a U.S. citizen with no criminal record beyond traffic violations and was a lawful gun owner.
Local authorities and media reports said groups of people gathered near the location after the shooting, and tensions rose in parts of the city. Federal agents used crowd-control measures, including tear gas and flash bangs, after confrontations between demonstrators and law enforcement personnel.
DISSENTING REACTIONS
In a post on Truth Social, U.S. President Donald Trump said that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the federal law enforcement agency under the DHS, "had to protect themselves" because of a lack of support from local police.
He also tried to justify the presence of ICE agents in Minnesota, asserting the state was covering up "massive Monetary Fraud, with Billions of Dollars missing."
In a telephone interview with The Wall Street Journal on Sunday, Trump declined to say whether the federal agent had acted appropriately and said the administration was reviewing the incident.
"I don't like any shooting. But I don't like it when somebody goes into a protest and he's got a very powerful, fully loaded gun with two magazines loaded up with bullets also. That doesn't play good either," Trump said, referring to the gun allegedly confiscated from Pretti.
Former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama on Sunday condemned the fatal shooting in separate statements, urging Americans to "speak out." Obama said the current administration seemed more eager to escalate tensions than to impose discipline and accountability, adding that official explanations for recent shootings in Minneapolis were not based on serious investigations and appeared to be contradicted by video evidence.
Officials within the Trump administration defended the shooting, with some expressing alarm while others stayed silent or backed the act. Many party leaders stayed silent, and some Republican lawmakers raised grave concerns, The New York Times (NYT) reported, citing "a rare moment of dissent" within the party.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem labeled Pretti's actions as "domestic terrorism" and accused Minnesota leadership of "encouragement of such violence against our citizens and our law enforcement officers."
Border Patrol Commander at Large Greg Bovino told CNN that the federal agents are "the victims" and that Pretti "injected himself into that law enforcement situation with a weapon."
The remarks drew outrage from local state officials, as well as members of Congress. "Carrying a firearm is not a death sentence," said Kentucky Congressman Thomas Massie in a post on X. "And if you don't understand this, you have no business in law enforcement or government."
"We believe in law and order in this state; we believe in peace," said Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. Republican Congressman James Comer suggested Sunday that Trump remove ICE from Minneapolis because local law enforcement isn't cooperating.
The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce on Sunday distributed a letter signed by more than 60 CEOs of Minnesota-based companies, calling for an "immediate de-escalation of tensions" and for state, local, and federal officials to "work together to find real solutions."
IMPEDED INVESTIGATION
DHS Secretary Noem said Saturday that her department will lead the investigation into the killing. Meanwhile, Minneapolis Police Chief O'Hara told CBS News on Sunday that his department hasn't received any cooperation or information from the federal government.
Late Saturday night, Judge Eric C. Tostrud of the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota granted a temporary restraining order requiring federal authorities to preserve all evidence related to the fatal shooting.
The order bars defendants, including the FBI and DHS, among others, from "destroying or altering evidence" connected to the incident, though it does not require immediate transfer of evidence to state investigators.
The lawsuit was filed by Minnesota state and local agencies, accusing the DHS of blocking state investigators from accessing the scene.
Governor Walz, who has already pledged a state investigation, complained that "closing the crime scene, sweeping away the evidence, defying a court order and not allowing anyone to look at it ... This is an inflection point in America."
Pretti's killing comes at a sensitive moment for the Republican Party as it prepares for a challenging midterm election this year. There are concerns within the party about "how backlash to the administration's aggressive tactics could damage their political prospects in the midterm elections," the NYT said in a report.
A growing number of Republicans are pressing for more information and a deeper investigation into federal immigration tactics in Minnesota, the Associated Press reported.
GOP Senator Thom Tillis warned against any attempt to "rush to judgment." "There must be a thorough and impartial investigation," he said in a post on X. "For this specific incident, that requires cooperation and transparency between federal, state and local law enforcement."
A hearing is set for Monday morning in Minneapolis to consider whether the immigration enforcement operation in the state should be at least temporarily halted. ■
