2 agents placed on administrative leave over Minneapolis shooting

Federal authorities have placed two federal immigration agents involved in the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti on administrative leave, FOX News reported Jan. 28. 

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said the move is standard protocol following an officer-involved shooting and should not be viewed as an indication of wrongdoing, the outlet reported. Both agents have been removed from field duty. 

According to a preliminary DHS review, published by USA Today Jan. 27, a Border Patrol agent and a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer discharged their firearms during the Jan. 24 struggle with Pretti in Minneapolis, approximately five seconds after an agent began shouting “He’s got a gun!” multiple times. The report did not specify whether gunfire from both agents struck Pretti.

The review was based on a preliminary assessment of body camera footage and internal CBP documentation and was provided to congressional oversight committees.

Some DHS officials initially described the shooting as a justified use of force, alleging that Pretti approached agents with a firearm and posed a serious threat, Zeale News previously reported. Meanwhile, videos circulated online raised questions about whether Pretti posed any immediate danger. According to FOX, the footage showed an agent removing Pretti’s firearm, a 9 mm pistol, from his waistband before other agents fired nearly a dozen shots in Pretti’s direction.

The DHS review did not say whether Pretti brandished his weapon before he was shot and noted that after the shooting, an agent said he had Pretti’s firearm in possession.

Pretti’s death has fueled protests in Minnesota over Operation Metro Surge, the Trump administration’s federal immigration effort in the Twin Cities. Attorney General Pam Bondi said on X Jan. 28 that federal agents had arrested 16 individuals accused of assaulting federal law enforcement during protests. She said additional arrests are expected. 

DHS statements depicting the shooting as justified and portraying Pretti’s actions as domestic terrorism also sparked backlash from lawmakers across the political spectrum.

In what he framed as an effort to de-escalate the situation in Minnesota, President Donald Trump announced Jan. 26 that he had dispatched Border Czar Tom Homan to the state. Trump also removed Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino, who had faced criticism for suggesting Pretti had planned a “massacre,” from the region.

On Jan. 27, Homan met with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both Democrats, as well as law enforcement officials. Following their meeting, Walz signaled that the parties had identified areas of common ground, saying in a statement that he and Homan had “agreed on the need for an ongoing dialogue and will continue working toward those goals."

In an interview with journalist Ken Klippenstein, posted on X on Jan. 28, Walz said, “I don't agree with Tom Homan’s philosophy on things, but I do understand that he is law enforcement and he understands right and wrong.”

Tensions between Trump and Frey, however, appear to remain unresolved. As Zeale News previously reported, Frey said Jan. 27 he had made it clear during his meeting with Homan that “Minneapolis does not and will not enforce federal immigration laws, and that we will remain focused on keeping our neighbors and streets safe.”

Shortly after Frey released his statement on X, Trump accused the mayor of violating federal law.

“Could somebody in his inner sanctum please explain that this statement is a very serious violation of the Law, and that he is PLAYING WITH FIRE!” the President said in a Truth Social post.

Frey responded, “The job of our police is to keep people safe, not enforce fed immigration laws. I want them preventing homicides, not hunting down a working dad who contributes to MPLS & is from Ecuador. It’s similar to the policy your guy Rudy had in NYC. Everyone should feel safe calling 911.”