A newly released video has shed light on the events leading up to the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse who was killed by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents in Minneapolis just over two weeks ago. The footage, which was recorded on January 13th, shows Pretti confronting federal immigration officers on a street in Minneapolis.
In the video, Pretti is seen kicking at the taillight of a government SUV before being tackled to the ground by federal agents. A handgun can be seen in his waistband, mirroring what was also present on footage from the day he was killed. The video does not appear to show whether Pretti was detained by the agents following the January 13th incident.
Later in the video, officers deploy chemical irritants in the street as other protesters shout and honk their horns. The video has been verified by CBS News partner BBC News, and confirms that it was filmed in Minneapolis.
A Department of Homeland Security official told CBS News that investigators with Homeland Security Investigations are analyzing the footage, which appears to show Pretti's interactions with federal agents on multiple occasions. An attorney for the Pretti family, Steve Schleicher, stated that Pretti's death "was violently assaulted by a group of ICE agents" just seven days before his fatal encounter with CBP agents.
The shooting occurred as Pretti and several others protested an operation by immigration officers in south Minneapolis. Videos from the scene show Pretti having his cellphone taken away from him before being shoved to the ground by several CBP agents, one of whom removes a gun from Pretti's waist during a skirmish moments before another agent opened fire.
According to a government report obtained by CBS News, two CBP agents fired their weapons during the encounter. The Trump administration has claimed that the shots were "defensive" in nature. The agents involved in the incident have been placed on leave, according to a federal law enforcement official.
The Pretti family was aware of this earlier video and have expressed outrage at his treatment by federal officers. His death has raised concerns about police accountability and the use of force by immigration agents.
In the video, Pretti is seen kicking at the taillight of a government SUV before being tackled to the ground by federal agents. A handgun can be seen in his waistband, mirroring what was also present on footage from the day he was killed. The video does not appear to show whether Pretti was detained by the agents following the January 13th incident.
Later in the video, officers deploy chemical irritants in the street as other protesters shout and honk their horns. The video has been verified by CBS News partner BBC News, and confirms that it was filmed in Minneapolis.
A Department of Homeland Security official told CBS News that investigators with Homeland Security Investigations are analyzing the footage, which appears to show Pretti's interactions with federal agents on multiple occasions. An attorney for the Pretti family, Steve Schleicher, stated that Pretti's death "was violently assaulted by a group of ICE agents" just seven days before his fatal encounter with CBP agents.
The shooting occurred as Pretti and several others protested an operation by immigration officers in south Minneapolis. Videos from the scene show Pretti having his cellphone taken away from him before being shoved to the ground by several CBP agents, one of whom removes a gun from Pretti's waist during a skirmish moments before another agent opened fire.
According to a government report obtained by CBS News, two CBP agents fired their weapons during the encounter. The Trump administration has claimed that the shots were "defensive" in nature. The agents involved in the incident have been placed on leave, according to a federal law enforcement official.
The Pretti family was aware of this earlier video and have expressed outrage at his treatment by federal officers. His death has raised concerns about police accountability and the use of force by immigration agents.
?! they killed an innocent nurse like that because he was standin up for what's right & protesting against ICE agents bein rough on ppl 
meanwhile these CBP agents just did whatever they wanted w/o any accountability 
it's so sad dat Alex Pretti had to die like dis 
his family deserves justice & we need 2 make sure this kinda thing never happens again 
the gov't is all like "oh it was a defensive shootin" but really it sounds like plain ol' abuse of power 
we need 2 hold these agents accountable 4 their actions 
this is soooo disturbing!!! I'm literally shaking just watching that footage 
How could they do that to someone who's just trying to exercise their right to free speech? 
It's like, what even happened after the video showed him kicking at the taillight? Were he detained or did they just leave him lying there on the ground? 
And now we're hearing that two agents fired their guns and one of them took Alex's gun away from him...this is getting more and more crazy by the minute! 
We need to talk about police accountability and the use of force in this country, like, for real! 
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like he was kicked at first & then they deployed chemical irritants in the street 
it's all so wild how is a guy supposed to just chill when his phone gets taken away from him 
? anyway i think this whole thing needs an investigation ASAP 
it's crazy how quickly things escalated from a protest to an all-out brawl. meanwhile, these officers are just going to get a slap on the wrist 
. And now we find out two agents fired their guns in this situation? That's like something straight outta a video game... how many more lives gotta get lost before people wake up and start questioning what's really going on here? 
Can you believe it? A nurse just trying to do his job gets tackled to the ground over a taillight (imagine if that was your car, dude!) 
But seriously, this is super worrying. I mean, who kicks at a government SUV and then expects no consequences? 
The family's right to be upset, though. This whole situation reeks of police accountability issues and it's time for some answers 
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. We need to hold those in power accountable for their actions, especially when it comes to protecting the rights and lives of vulnerable communities 
it's just heartbreaking watching him being tackled to the ground like that, i mean who kicks a taillight, right? 
. We need to be holding our law enforcement agencies accountable for their actions and making sure they're using the right level of force. This incident is definitely raising some serious questions about police accountability and use of force, especially when it comes to immigration agents 
. It's crazy how footage is coming out now, showing the whole thing - Alex Pretti kicking at a taillight, being taken down by federal agents... it's like something straight out of a movie 
. And the fact that two CBP agents fired their guns and one even took a gun from Pretti before he was killed? That's just not right 
. We need to make sure that whatever happened, we get to the bottom of it and that justice is served for Alex's family 
. There needs to be more accountability here 
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