The Case of Alex Pretti Has Reached a New Phase — All Decisions Are Now Set, and His Family Has Hired Lawyer

Posted by

31/01/2026

Deputy attorney general makes announcement over fatal shooting in Minneapolis as fierce protests there continue

The US deputy attorney general announced on Friday that the justice department has opened a federal civil rights investigation into the fatal shooting of the Minneapolis nurse Alex Pretti last Saturday by immigration officers, as fierce protests continued on the streets there.

“We’re looking at everything that would shed light on that day,” Todd Blanche, deputy to the attorney general, Pam Bondi, said at a press conference on Friday morning in Washington DC.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also said on Friday that the FBI would lead the investigation into the latest killing.

Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse at the military veterans hospital in Minneapolis and an activist, died while protesting against aggressive immigration raids and protester-control tactics by officers with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), border patrol and other federal agencies.

He was the third person shot during the surge of immigration enforcement personnel sent to the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and Saint Paul in Minnesota by the Trump administration as part of its mass deportation agenda, and the second to die after Renee Good was shot dead on 7 January.

The justice department’s announcement on Friday was a significant development after the Trump administration had earlier indicated a much narrower examination by the DHS.

Blanche said the new plan was like “any investigation that the Department of Justice and the FBI does every day. It means we’re looking at video, talking to witnesses, trying to understand what happened.” The justice department has not opened such an investigation into Good’s death.

a person holding a sign
View image in fullscreen
A national guard vehicle during a protest outside the Bishop Henry Whipple federal building, just south of Minneapolis, Minnesota, on 30 January. Photograph: Shannon Stapleton/Reuters
Protesters have gathered daily across parts of the Twin Cities for weeks. Friday was no exception.

“The community is really rallied, and I think it’s important just to stand with them and have more people on the streets,” said Ann Pelsue, 58, who made the three-hour journey from Iron River, Wisconsin, to join demonstrators outside a federal building in a Minneapolis suburb where many people targeted in the immigration raids, as well as protesters and observers who monitor federal enforcement actions, are taken and held.

Meanwhile, the homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, first disclosed the shift in which agency was leading the investigation into Pretti’s death during a Fox News interview on Thursday evening.

Noem also conceded that she may have gotten some information wrong in her initial response to Pretti’s shooting, when she held a press conference last Saturday and repeated allegations made by other officials that Pretti had been attacking officers – a narrative quickly and clearly contradicted by bystander video of him being shot as well as sworn witness testimony.

“We were being relayed information from on the ground from CBP agents and officers that were there,” Noem said in Thursday’s TV interview. The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency includes border patrol, with both alongside ICE under the umbrella of the DHS.

Noem described to Fox a “very chaotic” situation, when the host asked whether her responses last Saturday had been “premature”.

But the Trump administration had rushed in to blame Pretti. Greg Bovino, then commander of border patrol’s operation who was moved out of Minneapolis days later, said the nurse wanted to “massacre” federal officers, and numerous officials, including Noem, called Pretti a “domestic terrorist”. The administration had also quickly mischaracterized the core of what happened when Good was shot, infuriating local leaders and many communities.

Noem has been facing calls to resign amid widespread and mounting outrage, even among some Republicans. The North Carolina Republican senator Thom Tillis told reporters that Noem’s conduct “should be disqualifying”.

Videos of Pretti’s shooting showed that he had his mobile phone in his hand as officers tackled him to the ground after he tried to shield a fellow protester and he did not appear to touch or reach for the gun he had a permit to carry.

Two other videos emerged this week of an earlier altercation between Pretti and federal immigration officers 11 days before his death.

The videos from 13 January show Pretti yelling at federal vehicles and at one point appearing to spit before kicking out the taillight of one vehicle. A struggle ensues between Pretti and several officers, during which he is forced to the ground.

Steve Schleicher, a Minneapolis-based attorney representing Pretti’s parents, said the earlier altercation in no way justified officers fatally shooting Pretti more than a week later.

In a stark post on his Truth Social platform early on Friday morning, Donald Trump suggested that the videos of the earlier incident undercut the narrative that Pretti was a peaceful protester when he was shot.

“Agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist, Alex Pretti’s stock has gone way down with the just released video of him screaming and spitting in the face of a very calm and under control ICE officer, and then crazily kicking in a new and very expensive government vehicle, so hard and violent, in fact, that the taillight broke off in pieces,” the US president’s post said. It added: “It was quite a display of abuse and anger, for all to see, crazed and out of control.”

Later on Friday, protesters gathered outside the Bishop Henry Whipple building just south of Minneapolis, the federal building and holding center that has become the site of many demonstrations.

Dozens of people held up placards in Arctic temperatures, reading “ICE out now” and “Minnesota strong” while a chorus of whistles blared and cries of “shame” erupted when protesters spotted federal law enforcement enter the facility in their cars on Friday. Supporters set up stands, doling out hand warmers and energy bars to those braving the frigid weather to protest.

a man blowing a whistle a recording with his phone

Yaakov Segal, 23, said he had been demonstrating outside the building “three or four times a week” since Good’s killing. “I don’t see any sign of slowing down. Minnesota has been showing up ever since they started taking their neighbors,” he said.

Trump’s “border czar”, Tom Homan, was sent, over Noem’s head, to Minneapolis to replace Bovino earlier this week.

“Regardless of who is at the top right now, this is about the fact that you’re not following the rule of law,” said Caleb Dunnewind, 23, another protester, who lives just four blocks away from where Pretti was fatally shot, of federal officials’ conduct.

Tim Walz, Minnesota governor, and Jacob Frey, mayor of Minneapolis, both Democrats, have voiced public fury over the federal shootings and “invasion” by federal officials.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.

News

During his arrest, Justin Timberlake allegedly lost composure and shouted an 8-word statement: “No, no, I didn’t do it.”

“You boys [are] treating me like I’m a criminal,” the pop star said in a newly released video clip from his June 2024 arrest Justin Timberlake joked about his race while in police custody following his arrest on a DWI charge in June 2024. In newly released footage from the arrest, an officer with the Suffolk County Police […]

Justin Timberlake reportedly panicked and yelled, “I didn’t do it,” delivering an 8-word line now drawing major attention

Sh0cking Turn: The cause of the fire at Jessi Pierce’s home is now under scrutiny, with indications that it may not have been accidental

Beloved hockey reporter Jessi Pierce shared heartbreaking photos of her final outing with her three children to their favorite ice cream stand just one day before they all died in a house fire. Pierce, 37, her three children and a dog were all found dead in the aftermath of a devastating fire at their home […]

A Devastating Recording: Nearby cameras documented the tragic f!re that t00k the l!ves of Jessi Pierce and her thr33 ch!ldren

Jessi Pierce, a beloved hockey reporter in Minnesota, and her three children died in a house fire on Saturday, the NHL confirmed. She was 37. The early morning fire in Minnesota’s White Bear Lake led to the deaths of one adult and three children, the local fire department told Fox 9, though they did not confirm […]

Heartbreaking Footage: Cameras near the scene have captured the devastating moments when Jessi Pierce and her thr3e ch!ldren l8st their l!ves in a house f!re

A friend who allegedly witnessed Kouri Richins’ actions has revealed recorded footage — now released to the public

What Kouri Richins’ friend says she saw in murder’s aftermath After Kouri Richins was charged with murder for fatally poisoning her husband with fentanyl, a friend of the Utah mother of three had a difficult time reconciling that. In an exclusive interview with “20/20,” Ali Staking said she and her children were “devastated” about the sudden 2022 […]

End of content

No more pages to load

He Was There… Then He Was Gone — The Woman Who Appears in Scott Cole’s Final CCTV Clip Is Leaving Viewers Deeply Unsettled… 👇👇

Surveillance footage capturing the final known moments of Scott Cole before his disappearance is now at the center…

48 HOURS TO TRUTH: Why Thursday’s final report will either close the Jimmy Gracey case or spark an international criminal manhunt

Authorities share update on circumstances around missing college student Jimmy Gracey’s death Preliminary report of autopsy points to…

THE CLEAN BODY PUZZLE: Autopsy finds NO injuries prior to drowning—leaving the ‘spiked drink’ theory as the only sinister link left

Authorities share update on circumstances around missing college student Jimmy Gracey’s death Preliminary report of autopsy points to…

THE THIEF IN THE SHADOWS: Police admit Jimmy Gracey’s phone was found on a known criminal—yet insist the student fell into the sea ‘alone’

Authorities share update on circumstances around missing college student Jimmy Gracey’s death Preliminary report of autopsy points to…

During his arrest, Justin Timberlake allegedly lost composure and shouted an 8-word statement: “No, no, I didn’t do it.”

“You boys [are] treating me like I’m a criminal,” the pop star said in a newly released video…

Justin Timberlake reportedly panicked and yelled, “I didn’t do it,” delivering an 8-word line now drawing major attention

“You boys [are] treating me like I’m a criminal,” the pop star said in a newly released video…

BREAKING NEWS: Investigation ‘intensifies’ as missing welder’s trailer yields ‘horrifying’ forensic evidence

Kameron Harris-Lusk was last in contact Monday around 3 PM. Last known location is Robertsdale, AL. He was…

CRIME SCENE UNCOVERED: Forensic teams swarm missing welder’s trailer after ‘horrific’ discovery in Alabama

Kameron Harris-Lusk was last in contact Monday around 3 PM. Last known location is Robertsdale, AL. He was…

TRAGEDY IN ROBERTSDALE: Missing welder’s dog found dead as police probe ‘gruesome’ trailer evidence

Kameron Harris-Lusk was last in contact Monday around 3 PM. Last known location is Robertsdale, AL. He was…

Sh0cking Turn: The cause of the fire at Jessi Pierce’s home is now under scrutiny, with indications that it may not have been accidental

Beloved hockey reporter Jessi Pierce shared heartbreaking photos of her final outing with her three children to their…

He Was There… Then He Was Gone — The Woman Who Appears in Scott Cole’s Final CCTV Clip Is Leaving Viewers Deeply Unsettled… 👇👇
Surveillance footage capturing the final known moments of Scott Cole before his disappearance is now… Read more: He Was There… Then He Was Gone — The Woman Who Appears in Scott Cole’s Final CCTV Clip Is Leaving Viewers Deeply Unsettled… 👇👇
48 HOURS TO TRUTH: Why Thursday’s final report will either close the Jimmy Gracey case or spark an international criminal manhunt
Authorities share update on circumstances around missing college student Jimmy Gracey’s death Preliminary report of… Read more: 48 HOURS TO TRUTH: Why Thursday’s final report will either close the Jimmy Gracey case or spark an international criminal manhunt
THE CLEAN BODY PUZZLE: Autopsy finds NO injuries prior to drowning—leaving the ‘spiked drink’ theory as the only sinister link left
Authorities share update on circumstances around missing college student Jimmy Gracey’s death Preliminary report of… Read more: THE CLEAN BODY PUZZLE: Autopsy finds NO injuries prior to drowning—leaving the ‘spiked drink’ theory as the only sinister link left
THE THIEF IN THE SHADOWS: Police admit Jimmy Gracey’s phone was found on a known criminal—yet insist the student fell into the sea ‘alone’
Authorities share update on circumstances around missing college student Jimmy Gracey’s death Preliminary report of… Read more: THE THIEF IN THE SHADOWS: Police admit Jimmy Gracey’s phone was found on a known criminal—yet insist the student fell into the sea ‘alone’
During his arrest, Justin Timberlake allegedly lost composure and shouted an 8-word statement: “No, no, I didn’t do it.”
“You boys [are] treating me like I’m a criminal,” the pop star said in a… Read more: During his arrest, Justin Timberlake allegedly lost composure and shouted an 8-word statement: “No, no, I didn’t do it.”
Justin Timberlake reportedly panicked and yelled, “I didn’t do it,” delivering an 8-word line now drawing major attention
“You boys [are] treating me like I’m a criminal,” the pop star said in a… Read more: Justin Timberlake reportedly panicked and yelled, “I didn’t do it,” delivering an 8-word line now drawing major attention