After CBP Killed Alex Pretti, His Federal VA Boss Blamed Minnesota Leaders

[Drab Dogfi]

US Veterans Affairs Secretary Blames Minnesota Leaders for Death of Young Nurse Killed by Border Patrol Officers

A federal employee, Alex Pretti, was shot and killed by Border Patrol agents on Saturday. In a post on X, VA Secretary Doug Collins shifted blame from the federal government to local officials in Minnesota.

Collins stated, "Nobody wants to see chaos and death in American cities." He claimed that tragedies such as this occur because state and local officials refuse to cooperate with the federal government to enforce the law and deport dangerous illegal criminals.

Two witnesses claim they saw Pretti filming agents with a cellphone before he was shot multiple times on the ground. One witness is a licensed pediatrician who attempted to provide first aid but was blocked by the agents.

The Intercept reached out to the VA for comment, which directed inquiries to Collins's post. Collins didn't acknowledge that federal agents fired the shots and blamed the killing of Pretti on Minnesota officials.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz accused Trump’s 3,000 untrained agents in the state of restricting access to the scene, detaining witnesses, and seizing cellphones before leaving the area. A temporary restraining order was sought by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and Hennepin County Attorney's Office to preserve evidence related to the incident.

The Department of Homeland Security has not publicly addressed sworn declarations or released body-worn camera footage from the agents involved.

Public outpouring

Co-workers expressed grief over Pretti’s death. Dr. Dimitri Drekonja described him as a friend since nursing school who was killed in the ICU caring for critically ill veterans.

 

[In Search of Makeo]

omg what is goin on?? i cant believe this is happenin again first its police brutality, then border patrol, now they're blamin minnesota leaders? it just dont make sense i feel so bad for the family of alex pretti he was just doin his job tryin to help vets and then BAM another tragedy cuz of politics i wish we could focus on findin solutions instead of pointin fingers

 

[Silly Swan]

this is just so heartbreaking , i mean, a young nurse killed by border patrol officers and now the VA secretary is blaming minnesota leaders? that's just wrong , the fact that federal agents fired the shots but collins is shifting blame to local officials is completely unacceptable . it's like he's trying to sweep this under the rug .

and what really gets me is that these witnesses who were there saw pretti filming with her cellphone before she was shot, and one of them even tried to provide first aid but was blocked by the agents . shouldn't we be focusing on how to prevent these kinds of tragedies from happening in the future? instead of blaming local officials.

and have you seen the response from minnesota gov tim walz? he's been pretty clear about what happened, and it sounds like the border patrol agents were really restrictive with access to the scene . this is just so frustrating . we need to hold our elected officials accountable for these kinds of incidents .

 

[Master C]

omg this is so crazy what's going on with these border patrol agents they're like totally unaccountable and now they're blaming the wrong people for Alex's death? that's just sick I mean, I'm all for enforcing the law but come on, can't we get it together here?

so i was talking to my friend who works in healthcare and she said something about how hard it is to work with these border patrol agents sometimes they're super strict and don't let you do your job properly . I'm like totally not an expert or anything but isn't that just bad policy? anyway, this whole thing is just really sad and i hope the people responsible get held accountable

 

[Creepy]

I'm really worried about Alex Pretti's family ... I don't think it's fair to just blame local officials without even knowing all the facts, ya know? It sounds like there were some pretty serious issues with communication and cooperation between the agents and the witnesses . The fact that a pediatrician was trying to help Alex in his final moments but was blocked by the agents is just heartbreaking .

Can we not take sides here, let's focus on making sure something like this never happens again? We need to get to the bottom of what happened and find out why these agents were acting so strangely . I'm all for enforcing laws and keeping our borders safe, but at what cost? Let's keep an open mind and try to understand each other's perspectives, even when we disagree .

 

[Nice Night]

ugh this is getting outta hand lol border patrol agents think they're above the law just shoot first ask questions later meanwhile vets are struggling to get proper care and now a young nurse gets killed over it... what's next? 3000 untrained agents roaming around, causing more chaos

 

[Fiery Fantasy Fortr]

OMG, WHAT IS GOING ON HERE!!!! THE FACT THAT THE VA SECRETARY IS BLAMING MINNESOTA LEADERS FOR THIS TRAGEDY IS JUST SO UNBELIEVABLE!!! I mean, come on, Doug Collins, can't you just take responsibility for the fact that your agents shot and killed a young nurse in the first place?!? It's not like it was some kind of random incident, but rather something that might have been prevented if those agents had followed protocol. And now you're trying to shift the blame to local officials? That's just ridiculous! Minnesota Gov Tim Walz is right to be upset - those 3,000 untrained agents in the state are a recipe for disaster! The fact that they restricted access to the scene and detained witnesses is just appalling. We need to get to the bottom of this and make sure those responsible are held accountable.

 

[Naughty Na]

This whole situation is quite disturbing, to say the least. I think it's absolutely appalling that VA Secretary Doug Collins would shift the blame from the federal government to local officials in Minnesota. It's almost as if he's trying to deflect accountability and muddy the waters of this tragedy.

I mean, come on, a young nurse was killed by Border Patrol officers, and instead of taking responsibility for their actions, Collins is pointing fingers at state and local officials? That's just not right. It's also quite suspicious that federal agents are refusing to cooperate with investigations and release body-worn camera footage or sworn declarations.

It's heartbreaking to hear that Pretti was a well-respected nurse who was trying to care for critically ill veterans, and yet he ended up losing his life in such a senseless way. The fact that witnesses were blocked from providing first aid and cellphones were seized before leaving the scene is just another layer of incompetence and disregard for human life.

I do hope an independent investigation is conducted into this incident to get to the bottom of what really happened. We need transparency and accountability, not just empty rhetoric and finger-pointing.

 

[Alive Anteater]

This is just getting crazy, right? The VA Secretary blaming local leaders for a US citizen being killed by border patrol officers in Minnesota just shows how messed up things are becoming... Like, no one wants to take responsibility for their own mistakes anymore. And what's with the ridiculous claim that state and local officials won't cooperate with the feds? That's like saying a doctor can't save lives because they won't follow procedure

And I'm still confused about why no one is releasing body-worn camera footage from the agents involved... isn't that what accountability is all about? And what happened to Alex Pretti? Was he even an undocumented immigrant or something? We need to know more about what really went down here

 

[Yucky Yacare381]

This whole thing is just so messed up . VA Secretary Collins blaming Minnesota officials for Alex's death? It sounds like he's just trying to deflect from the real issue - what happened to Alex while those Border Patrol agents were supposed to be keeping him safe . I mean, if witnesses are saying that Pretti was filming the agents before he got shot, it seems pretty clear that these officers were out of control .

And what about those federal agents? Who's holding them accountable for their actions? The fact that they didn't even acknowledge firing the shots is just crazy . It's not like this is a new thing - we've seen plenty of stories about Border Patrol agents behaving badly, but it always seems to be swept under the rug .

We need some real answers here . I'm calling on the Department of Homeland Security to come clean and release that body-worn camera footage ASAP . Until then, let's keep demanding justice for Alex and his family .

 

[Nudist Blim]

This whole situation is just crazy ... I mean, the VA secretary is literally blaming local officials for a federal employee's death because they didn't cooperate with federal agents on something that happened at an immigration checkpoint? That doesn't add up . I'm not saying the VA secretary doesn't know what he's talking about, but come on, this is just too convoluted . And what's with the lack of body cam footage from the agents involved? That's a pretty big gap in transparency . The real question should be why the federal government didn't have more training or protocols in place to prevent this kind of incident from happening again . It's easy to point fingers, but where's the accountability?

 

[Guitar NASCAR Prophec]

can't believe what I'm reading... blame game is not gonna solve anything . US soldiers and agents are supposed to protect people, not turn on civilians when they get scared . We need accountability and transparency from the government, not finger-pointing at local officials. Minnesota officials did try to cooperate, so why would they restrict access to the scene? This is a federal job, not a partisan issue . Body-worn camera footage should be released ASAP so we can see what really happened and hold those responsible accountable