Family Demands Truth After Federal Officer Fatally Shoots Minneapolis Nurse
The grieving family of a 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse shot dead by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis has issued a powerful statement, demanding transparency and condemning what they describe as "sickening lies" spread by the Trump administration about their son.
Conflicting Accounts Emerge Following Fatal Incident
Alex Pretti, who cared for US veterans at the Minneapolis VA hospital, was sprayed with irritants before being shot at least ten times within just five seconds on Friday. His family remembers him as a "kindhearted soul who cared deeply for his family and friends" in their emotional public statement.
They vehemently dispute official accounts, asserting that both his hands were clearly visible during the incident and that he had been attempting to protect a woman who had been pushed by federal officers. "Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump's murdering and cowardly ICE thugs," the family declared.
Video Evidence and Official Claims Contradict Each Other
In bystander videos that surfaced shortly after the shooting, Mr Pretti appears with a phone in his hand, with no footage showing him holding a visible weapon. However, the Department of Homeland Security presented a starkly different narrative, claiming he was carrying a semi-automatic handgun with two magazines of ammunition and implying he "wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement."
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara noted that police believe Mr Pretti was a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry, while information about what precisely led to the shooting remains limited.
Political Tensions Escalate in Minneapolis
The shooting has further inflamed existing tensions in Minneapolis, where immigration and customs enforcement presence had already been heightened following the fatal shooting of Renee Good in the city weeks earlier. Hundreds of demonstrators braved freezing conditions to gather for a vigil, while protesters clashed with federal officers who wielded batons and deployed flash bangs.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called on President Trump to "pull the thousands of violent, untrained officers out of Minnesota. Now," describing the situation as "sickening." The Minnesota National Guard has been assisting local police at the governor's direction, with Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey requesting they wear reflective vests to distinguish them from other agencies.
Administration Officials Defend Federal Response
Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino stated that federal law enforcement had been under "constant attack" in Minneapolis for weeks. In social media posts, President Trump shared an image of what immigration officials identified as the recovered gun, describing Mr Pretti as a gunman and questioning why he was armed.
DHS secretary Kristi Noem also raised questions about why Mr Pretti was armed during a news conference, though she did not claim he had drawn or brandished his weapon at officers.
Colleagues and Community Rally Behind Victim
Robert Alver, who worked with Mr Pretti in a university science lab nearly seventeen years ago, emotionally described him as "everything you would want in a colleague and a friend." He strongly criticised official comments about the incident, stating "there is no way on God's green Earth that he would ever be going anywhere to hurt somebody."
The shooting occurred just over a mile from where federal immigration officers shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Good on January 7th, an incident that had already sparked widespread protests throughout the city.
