The Trump administration has described the moments leading up to the death of Alex Jeffrey Pretti in Minneapolis as an attack initiated by Pretti, claiming he approached federal officers with a handgun and violently resisted efforts to disarm him, prompting a border patrol agent to fire in self defence.
However, video footage circulating online appears to contradict the official account. The videos show no clear evidence that Pretti used or threatened officers with a weapon. Instead, the footage shows him being pepper sprayed, wrestled to the ground, and shot after an officer appeared to remove a handgun from a holster on his body.
Pretti, an intensive care unit nurse, was described by his family as having joined citywide observation protests after becoming deeply upset by President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. His death has intensified an already strained relationship between the Trump administration and Minnesota’s Democratic leadership, which has called for the removal of federal immigration officials from the state.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries strongly condemned the shooting, accusing the administration and the Department of Homeland Security of acting without restraint.
“Trump and the Department of Homeland Security are completely and totally out of control,” Jeffries said in a statement. “Today, lawless and masked thugs masquerading as law enforcement officers brutally killed another American citizen on the streets of Minneapolis without justification.”
Jeffries described the killing as a preventable tragedy, referring to Pretti as a Veterans Affairs nurse, and echoed Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s call for an independent investigation.
“The American people deserve a thorough, independent investigation without interference or obstruction by the Department of Homeland Security,” Jeffries said, adding that taxpayer funds were being misused to brutalize American citizens and law abiding immigrants with impunity.
The incident comes amid heightened political tension surrounding allegations of fraud in Minnesota. In a social media post, President Trump again accused local officials of covering up fraud, without presenting evidence. He claimed that billions of dollars had been stolen from Minnesota, linking the allegation to broader claims of misconduct in the state.
The issue of fraud has circulated in Washington and Minnesota for several years, following allegations by a conservative YouTuber that some child care centres operated by Somali immigrants were receiving public funds without providing services. The claims were later amplified by senior administration officials, including Vice President JD Vance and Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Subsequently, the Trump administration announced a pause in federal child care funding for Minnesota, with the president describing the state as a hub of fraudulent money laundering activity. In January, the White House also announced the creation of a new Justice Department division focused on national fraud enforcement.
Federal authorities have previously prosecuted several fraud schemes in Minnesota. In 2021, investigations led to charges against more than ninety people, with sixty two convictions so far. One major case involved the Feeding Our Future organization, which prosecutors said falsely claimed to be providing meals to children while submitting fraudulent invoices, resulting in losses estimated at two hundred and fifty million dollars.
It remains unclear why President Trump linked the Minneapolis shooting to allegations of fraud, or why he suggested it was part of a cover up.
Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security released a photograph of what it said was the handgun carried by the man shot dead in Minneapolis. Calls for an independent investigation continue to grow as public scrutiny of the incident intensifies.
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