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By Andrew Stanton
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Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche broke with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s remarks about the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis over the weekend.
Why It Matters
Pretti is the second American citizen to be fatally shot by federal agents in Minneapolis amid President Donald Trump’s administration’s ramped-up immigration enforcement in the city.
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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says Pretti "approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9 mm semiautomatic handgun." However, videos verified by various news outlets show Pretti was holding a phone in his right hand, with nothing in his left hand, before he was shot, contradicting those claims.
Pretti was legally conceal-carrying a handgun at the time of his death. Records reflect no serious criminal history, according to authorities and public records cited by local media.
His death has added to the scrutiny U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has already been facing over its tactics used in Minneapolis, as well as after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good earlier in January. Local officials in Minnesota have called for the agency to withdraw from the state, arguing it has not made conditions safer. Critics have called on Congress to rein in ICE amid growing concerns about its operations.
What To Know
Blanche discussed the fatal shooting of Pretti during an interview on Fox & Friends. He declined to back up DHS's assertion that Pretti was engaging in domestic terrorism, maintaining that the shooting remains under investigation. He said he did not want to "prejudge" Pretti's actions.
“I don't think anybody thinks that they were comparing what happened on Saturday to the legal definition of domestic terrorism. What we saw was a very violent altercation, and I’m not going to prejudge the facts,” he said during an interview on Fox News.
He added there is “a bunch of video we haven’t seen yet” of the minutes leading up to what happened and what happened after.
“I’m not describing it as anything except for a tragedy,” he said.
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Other Trump administration officials had cast Pretti as a domestic terrorist.
“Violence against a government because of ideological reasons and for reasons to resist and to perpetuate violence. That is the definition of domestic terrorism,” Noem said during a press conference on Saturday.
Trump said his administration is "reviewing everything" about the shooting, while local officials have continued to criticize ICE and the administration over the situation in Minneapolis.
“All of us understand the potential this incident has to further inflame tensions on our streets. The difference is, we want calm, and they want chaos. We cannot – we will not – give them what they want by meeting violence with violence," Minnesota Governor Tim Walz wrote in a statement on Saturday. “Minnesotans and our local law enforcement have done everything we can to deescalate. The federal government must deescalate. I once again call on the President to remove the 3,000 agents from Minnesota who are sowing chaos and violence."
Pretti was a 37-year-old ICU nurse. His parents wrote in a joint statement criticizing the administration's "lies" as "reprehensible and disgusting," writing that he is "clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump's murdering and cowardly ICE thugs."
Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, previously told Newsweek that DHS viewed it as a "situation where an individual wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement."
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday: "I am sending [border czar] Tom Homan to Minnesota tonight. He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there. Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me. Separately, a major investigation is going on with respect to the massive 20 Billion Dollar, Plus, Welfare Fraud that has taken place in Minnesota, and is at least partially responsible for the violent organized protests going on in the streets.
"Additionally, the DOJ and Congress are looking at 'Congresswoman' Ilhan Omar, who left Somalia with NOTHING, and is now reportedly worth more than 44 Million Dollars. Time will tell all. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DJT."
Representative Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, wrote on X: "This appears to be an execution by immigration enforcement. I am absolutely heartbroken, horrified, and appalled that federal agents murdered another member of our community. It is beyond shameful these federal agents are targeting our residents instead of protecting them."
National Nurses United said in a statement: "The nation’s nurses, who make it their mission to care for and save human lives, are horrified and outraged that immigration agents have once again committed cold-blooded murder of a public observer who posed no threat to them. This time, they have executed one of our fellow nurses, Alex Pretti, who saved veterans’ lives as an intensive care unit RN for the Veterans Health Administration. He not only advocated for his patients inside the VA as a member of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), but also took his advocacy to the streets to stand up for his community as nurses do. We demand justice and accountability for his murder."
The National Association for Gun Rights wrote on X: “Carrying an extra magazine implies nothing. Holsters designed to carry spare magazines are common and widely sold. Training resources and guides across the internet actively recommend it. Thousands of law-abiding Americans do this every day. This is standard, not overkill. Claiming otherwise sets a dangerous precedent for Second Amendment rights and creates an easy backdoor argument for magazine bans and similar legislation.”
What Happens Next
The shooting remains under investigation. Noem said on Sunday that her office would lead the federal investigation into the shooting. Minnesota officials have said the state will conduct its own investigation. Walz has said the state must lead the investigation.
"Let state investigators secure justice. As we process the scene, stay peaceful and give them space. The State has the personnel to keep people safe – federal agents must not obstruct our ability to do so," he said.
Update 1/26/26, 10:37 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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