State lawsuit seeks to force DHS to preserve all evidence in Alex Pretti shooting
Hennepin County Attorney’s Office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension have filed a civil suit in U.S. District Court asking a judge to bar the Department of Homeland Security, ICE, Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi from destroying or altering any evidence in the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti. Pretti, a 37‑year‑old ICU nurse, was killed after a U.S. Border Patrol agent shot him in south Minneapolis amid the federal "Operation Metro Surge," and surveillance videos, family accounts and conflicting federal statements have prompted protests and demands from officials — including AG Keith Ellison and Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty — for independent review and preservation of evidence.
📌 Key Facts
- A U.S. Border Patrol agent fatally shot 37-year-old Minneapolis resident Alex Pretti on Jan. 24 in south Minneapolis near 26th Street and Nicollet Avenue; early federal leaks said he was shot in the leg, but subsequent reporting says he was shot in the chest and died.
- Pretti was an ICU nurse employed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, a member of an AFGE local union, a University of Minnesota graduate, an avid outdoorsman and cyclist; family members say he had only minor offenses on his record and held a valid Minnesota carry permit.
- Multiple surveillance and bystander videos circulated showing moments in which Pretti appears disarmed, on the ground or not actively pointing a gun when shots are fired; those clips are central to disputes over the federal account and expected to be key evidence in litigation and investigations.
- The shooting occurred amid the Trump administration’s 'Operation Metro Surge' and is at least the third federal‑agent shooting in Minneapolis in a matter of weeks, following the Jan. 7 killing of Renee Good and another north‑side case, intensifying calls for independent investigations.
- Protesters quickly gathered at the scene and a memorial formed at 26th & Nicollet; federal officers deployed chemical irritants against crowds and detained at least one person, fueling public outcry and political backlash against federal immigration enforcement in the city.
- Local officials and elected leaders — including Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty and Gov. Tim Walz — demanded federal cooperation so the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) could process the scene; other officials and civil‑rights groups publicly criticized the federal response.
- Hennepin County Attorney’s Office and the Minnesota BCA filed a civil lawsuit in U.S. District Court seeking a court order barring DHS, ICE and Customs and Border Protection from destroying or altering any evidence in the Pretti shooting; the suit names DHS, ICE, CBP and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi as defendants.
- Federal and union statements diverge: DHS and a Border Patrol union defended the agents and described the incident as a response to an armed threat, while family members, local leaders and video evidence raise questions about the official narrative and the reliability of early federal accounts.
📊 Relevant Data
Operation Metro Surge is a DHS-led immigration enforcement operation that has resulted in more than 3,000 arrests of criminal illegal aliens in Minneapolis since its inception in late 2025, targeting individuals including gang members, rapists, and burglars.
More than 3,000 arrests of criminal illegal aliens in Minneapolis Operation Metro Surge — ICE Facebook
Armed demonstrations in the US are nearly six times as likely to turn violent or destructive compared to unarmed demonstrations, based on data from 2020-2021.
Armed Assembly: Guns, Demonstrations, and Political Violence in America — Everytown Research
Venezuelan immigrants in the US contribute significantly to the economy, with estimates of around 70,000 Venezuela-owned businesses generating about $62 billion in economic impact as of 2025.
Measuring Venezuelan American Impact on the US Economy — Caracas Chronicles
Venezuela's homicide rate fell to a 22-year low in 2023, partly due to mass migration reducing the population at risk, with violent deaths decreasing amid economic crisis and out-migration.
Venezuela’s Violent Deaths Fall to 22-Year Low on Migration — Bloomberg
There have been at least 19 incidents of federal immigration officers involved in shootings or brandishing weapons during enforcement operations in the US from September 2025 to January 2026.
Data: Federal immigration officers involved in 19 shootings in Trump's second term — WYFF4
Young men born in Somalia have roughly twice the incarceration rate of those born in the United States when compared like-for-like in Minnesota data from 2026.
Yes, Somali Immigrants Commit More Crime Than Natives — City Journal
📰 Source Timeline (9)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Hennepin County Attorney’s Office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension have jointly filed a civil lawsuit in U.S. District Court seeking a court order barring DHS, ICE and CBP from destroying or altering any evidence in the Alex Pretti shooting.
- The suit names DHS, ICE, Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi as defendants.
- AG Keith Ellison publicly stated, “Federal agents are not above the law and Alex Pretti is certainly not beneath it,” and Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty emphasized that her office asserts jurisdiction to review the case for potential criminal charges against the agents.
- The article synthesizes multiple surveillance and bystander videos of the Alex Pretti shooting, emphasizing sequences where he appears disarmed, on the ground, or not actively pointing a gun when shots are fired, sharpening the factual dispute with DHS’s narrative.
- It details how different political leaders — notably Gov. Tim Walz, Minneapolis officials and federal spokespeople — are publicly reaching opposing conclusions from the same video evidence, with locals calling the shooting unjustified and DHS framing it as necessary force against an armed threat.
- The story underscores that these videos are expected to be central evidence in civil‑rights litigation and official investigations, and notes growing public skepticism online as residents circulate clips that appear to contradict federal characterizations.
- Confirms the victim’s full name as 37‑year‑old Minneapolis resident Alex Pretti, a U.S. citizen with only traffic violations on his record and a valid Minnesota permit to carry.
- Details that Pretti was an ICU nurse employed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, a member of AFGE Local 3669, and is being publicly mourned by AFGE Local 704, which labeled the shooting his 'murder' and praised his service to veterans.
- Adds personal background: graduate of the University of Minnesota’s College of Liberal Arts (2011), avid outdoorsman and competitive cyclist, deeply engaged in protests against ICE and prior police violence, including demonstrations after George Floyd’s murder.
- Includes interviews with his father, mother and ex‑wife describing his politics (Democratic voter), history of protest participation, and the fact he obtained a carry permit and at least one semiautomatic handgun about three years ago.
- Shows that a memorial is forming at 26th & Nicollet, with community members gathering at the shooting site.
- The man killed by a U.S. Border Patrol officer in south Minneapolis is identified by family as an ICU nurse who worked in critical care.
- Family members provide biographical details and describe his professional and personal life, including his role supporting patients and relatives.
- Relatives challenge aspects of the federal account of the shooting, adding their description of what kind of person he was and why he was in the area.
- Confirms the latest killing involved a Border Patrol agent, not ICE, though protests and political reaction are still focused on ICE’s presence.
- Documents on‑record responses from Gov. Tim Walz, Rep. Ilhan Omar, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Trump adviser Stephen Miller.
- Elevates public framing that this is the third Minneapolis killing by federal agents since Renee Good was shot Jan. 7 and explicitly ties it to the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
- Carries a Border Patrol Union statement asserting agents are 'trained extremely well' and framing the incident as a response to a 'supposed peaceful protester' brandishing a loaded handgun.
- Confirms this latest killing is at least the third time in a matter of weeks that federal officers have shot someone in Minneapolis under Operation Metro Surge.
- Details contradictions between early federal leaks (leg wound) and subsequent reporting indicating the man was shot in the chest and died, underscoring reliability issues in official accounts.
- Places the shooting explicitly in the pattern of prior federal shootings (Renee Good and a north‑side case) and explains that it further escalates calls for independent investigations, with local officials and civil‑rights groups saying the surge is out of control.
- Reports that protest response after this shooting again involved chemical agents and aggressive crowd control, deepening fears among residents and adding fuel to lawsuits and impeachment calls targeting DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.
- Confirms federal agents (reported as Border Patrol via FOX reporting) fatally shot a man Saturday morning in Minneapolis, making this the third federal-agent shooting in the city since Renee Good was killed Jan. 7.
- Pins the location to the 26th–28th Street West and Nicollet Avenue South area and reports the man was shot in the chest and has died, per FOX 9 sources.
- Reports that protesters quickly gathered at the scene and that federal officers deployed chemical irritants on the crowd; at least one man was detained during the protest.
- Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty says her office is coordinating with the Minnesota BCA and publicly demands that federal authorities allow the BCA to process the scene.
- The City of Minneapolis has scheduled an 11:30 a.m. briefing with Mayor Jacob Frey, Chief Brian O’Hara and Emergency Management Director Rachel Sayre, and Frey again publicly calls for ICE to leave Minnesota.
- AP, citing a federal law‑enforcement source, reports a federal officer shot a person in the leg during an arrest in Minneapolis.
- The AP account corroborates earlier local reporting that this was a federal use‑of‑force incident, not MPD or another local agency.
- The piece reinforces that this shooting is separate from, but follows, the ICE killing of Renee Good amid Operation Metro Surge.