New footage emerged that reveal Alex Pretti had been in an altercation with federal agents during a Minneapolis protest 11 days before he was fatally shot by Border Patrol officers.
In a video filmed on 13 January and shared by media outlet The News Movement, the 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse can be seen shouting, along with other observers, at a vehicle of federal officers. When the agents began to drive away, Pretti kicked out the car’s tail light, prompting an agent to get out and forcefully pin him to the ground.
Several more agents join in, while other masked and helmeted officers aim themselves at the screaming crowd. Pretti’s winter coat eventually comes off, and he then appears to either break free or the officers let him go as he scurries away.
Some bystanders shout “just go!” at the officers before they set off tear gas canisters and eventually withdraw. As the officers drive away, a man approaches Pretti to ask if he is OK. Pretti confirms that he is, then turns to others and asks, “Are we all OK? Are we all safe?”
Pretti is wearing a similar outfit to the one he wore during the encounter on the day of his fatal shooting. When he turns his back to the camera at a certain point during the video, what appears to be a handgun is visible in his waistband, which he is licensed to carry. At no point in the video does Pretti reach for the gun.
A person with knowledge on the incident who spoke on condition of anonymity confirmed to press agency The Associated Press that the man in the video is Pretti.
Homeland Security Investigations, which is leading the investigation into Pretti’s killing, is reviewing the new footage and earlier altercation, a spokesperson of the department said.
US President Donald Trump reshared a user’s post on Truth Social containing the newly-releated footage of the 13 January incident, captioned “such a peaceful protester”.
Steve Schleicher, the attorney representing Pretti’s parents said, said that the earlier altercation did not justify the officers to fatally shoot Pretti on 24 January.
“A week before Alex was gunned down in the street, despite posing no threat to anyone, he was violently assaulted by a group of ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents,” Schleicher added.
Pretti was killed last weekend by federal agents during an immigration raid in Minneapolis. Trump administration officials claimed Pretti had approached the officers with a gun and posed a threat to them, however, videos recorded from various angles by bystanders show Pretti never drew a weapon and was instead holding a cell phone.
It remains unclear whether officers involved in the newly released footage were also there when Pretti was killed.
Vigil for Pretti
Hundreds gathered on Wednesday for a vigil to honour Pretti, where people placed candles, flowers and signs at the spot where he was killed.
“It could have been any of us,” Harmonie Pirius, a registered nurse said, “he was trying to help someone and that’s kind of what we’re all about”. In footage circulating of his fatal shooting, Pretti can be seen trying to help a woman before he was tackled by federal agents.
Pretti’s killing follows a few weeks after another US citizen, 37-year-old Renee Good, was shot dead by a US immigration officer in Minneapolis while seated in her car. Good’s death came days after the Trump administration deployed roughly 2,000 federal agents and officers to the city in what it described as the “largest immigration operation ever”.
The two deaths intensified criticism of ICE, with many Democrats and protesters calling for federal immigration officers to leave Minnesota.
Earlier this week, the Trump administration agreed to scale back federal presence and announced US Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino, who had drawn widespread criticism for his aggressive tactics, and other agents were set to leave Minneapolis.
The Deparment of Homeland Security now also confirmed two federal agents involved in Pretti’s death were placed on leave.
Additional sources • AP