The second fatal shooting this month of an American citizen in Minneapolis by at the hands of a federal agent has ratcheted up tensions in the city once again — and led to disputed accounts of what happened.<\/p>\n
Alex Pretti, 37, an ICU nurse at a VA hospital, was fatally shot by a Border Patrol agent Saturday morning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"Border](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/b64063d1-cad9-4584-9638-7b2b81eaf6d4\/minn-7-gty-gmh-260125_1769349373216_hpMain.jpg?w=375 "\\"Border")
<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>People pay their respects during a candlelight vigil for Alex Pretti after he was shot and killed earlier in the day, January 24, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Brandon Bell\/Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The Department of Homeland Security claims Pretti approached officers with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun and when officers attempted to disarm him, he “violently resisted.”\u00a0<\/p>\n “Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots,” DHS said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Local officials have disputed this characterization of events and criticized federal officials accusing them of rushing to “spin” the story.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Minneapolis police chief said Pretti was a licensed handgun owner. Minnesota’s gun laws\u00a0<\/a>permit<\/a>\u00a0open carrying a handgun as long as the gun owner has a valid permit.<\/p>\n Videos of the confrontation showed the encounter between Pretti and officers. During the encounter, federal agents are seen spraying Pretti with a substance and pinning him to the ground before the shooting.<\/p>\n People look on near the site where 37-year-old Alex Pretti was allegedly shot and killed by federal agents on Jan. 24, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Stephen Maturen\/Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n A witness in a federal court filing said Pretti was one of three people pepper-sprayed by agents and was attempting to help a woman up when he was tackled by the agents.\u00a0<\/p>\n DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol Commander at Large Greg Bovino have claimed — without providing further evidence — that Pretti arrived at the scene “to inflict maximum damage on individuals.” Noem told reporters that his actions amounted to “domestic terrorism.”\u00a0<\/p>\n “This individual who came with weapons and ammunition to stop a law enforcement operation of federal law enforcement officers committed an act of domestic terrorism, that’s the facts,” Noem said.<\/p>\n Despite being asked by reporters, neither Bovino nor Noem answered when asked if Pretti ever brandished the gun before the encounter.<\/p>\n A photograph of 37-year-old Alex Pretti can be seen at a makeshift memorial in the area where he was shot dead by federal immigration agents earlier in the day in Minneapolis, Minnesota, January 24, 2026.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Roberto Schmidt\/AFP via Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz criticized federal officials saying, before any investigation has been completed, “the most powerful people in the federal government are spinning stories.”<\/p>\n State and local officials say they will conduct their own investigation into the shooting and repeated their calls for federal\u00a0immigration agents to leave the city.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"commander\"](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/196bcda4-2488-46bd-a70e-93b806430db5\/minneapolis-sign-gty-jt-260124_1769295323483_hpMain.jpg?w=375 "\\"commander\\"")
<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>![\"DHS](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/07472656-bdf6-410b-a285-a8f10039f73f\/minn-1-gty-gmh-260125_1769347405955_hpMain.jpg?w=375 "\\"DHS")
<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>