Why was Alex Pretti in Minesota
Executive summary
Alex Pretti was in Minnesota because it was his home and workplace: he lived in Minneapolis and worked as an intensive care nurse at the Minneapolis VA, and he was on Nicollet Avenue in south Minneapolis on January 24 during a large federal immigration enforcement operation when he confronted agents and was shot [1] [2] [3]. Video and reporting show he was recording or observing an arrest by federal officers, had earlier clashed with agents days before, and that facts about what led to the shooting remain disputed and under review [3] [4] [5].
1. Home and job anchored him in Minneapolis
Pretti was a 37-year-old Minneapolis resident and an intensive care nurse at the United States Department of Veterans Affairs’ Minneapolis facility, which explains why he lived and worked in Minnesota rather than being there for a transient reason [1] [2]. Community reaction—vigils at 26th Street and Nicollet and a memorial outside the VA—underscore that he was known locally as a healthcare worker in that city [6] [2].
2. He was at the scene to observe or record an ICE/CBP enforcement action
Multiple news organizations reconstructed video showing Pretti on Nicollet Avenue holding a phone minutes before shots were fired, in what appears to be an attempt to record or document federal officers detaining someone nearby; that timeline places him at the scene because of the enforcement activity unfolding there [3]. National reporting ties his presence to a broader immigration enforcement campaign in the Twin Cities — described in reporting as an expanded Operation Metro Surge — that brought hundreds of federal agents and thousands of arrests to Minnesota in recent weeks, creating the context for civilian observation and protest [1].
3. He confronted agents and had a prior clash days earlier
Bystander and police body-camera video released after the shooting show Pretti engaging directly with federal officers shortly before the shooting, and separately a newly surfaced clip shows an altercation between a man who appears to be Pretti and federal agents 11 days earlier in which he yells at officers and is tackled, indicating he had been in confrontations with agents during the surge of federal activity [3] [4] [7]. Those earlier images are part of why family members and local advocates stress he had been harmed and agitated in prior encounters, though what provoked each episode is not fully established on camera [4].
4. Official and family narratives diverge about his motives and actions
Federal officials initially portrayed the encounter as Pretti “approaching” agents with a weapon, an account that the family and some video analysts dispute; family statements and some footage are cited as suggesting he held a phone and had his hands raised when attacked, and reporting notes that videos appear to contradict certain official claims, leaving the precise sequence and motive contested [1] [3] [4]. The Department of Homeland Security has said agents fired during the struggle and has placed the two agents who fired on administrative leave while internal reviews proceed, reflecting the ongoing institutional response to competing narratives [5] [8].
5. The broader enforcement operation drew civilians into public streets and scrutiny
Reporting situates Pretti’s presence amid the largest federal immigration enforcement operation cited in some accounts as sweeping the Twin Cities and expanding across Minnesota, an operation that drew protests, bystanders documenting arrests, and intense scrutiny after multiple fatal encounters in a short span — a context that helps explain why Minneapolis residents, including Pretti, were on city streets observing or confronting agents [1] [8]. Sources note the operation prompted public vigils, political fallout, and calls for accountability, which continue as investigators and local leaders evaluate what happened [9] [5].