As outrage continues in Minneapolis after the shooting of a 37-year-old U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs ICU nurse by federal immigration agents over the weekend, two former presidents have spoken out calling for all Americans to stand up to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Alex Pretti became the second person shot dead by an agent in Minneapolis this month following the shooting of Renee Good, who died instantly after bullets were fired into her car just a few weeks ago. 

Narratives of the incident differed massively, with President Donald Trump’s administration claiming that he violently resisted arrest and was armed and about to use his weapon, but eyewitnesses, local officials and the victim’s family have vigorously challenged that account, pointing out that he actually only had a phone in his hand at the time of him being pounced upon by officials.

Obama in “wake-up” claim

With video evidence appearing to support the family’s version, former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton have spoken out.

Mr Obama along with his former First Lady Michelle Obama called Mr Pretti’s killing a “heartbreaking tragedy”. In a statement, the couple say the shooting “should be a wake-up call to every American, regardless of party, that many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under assault.

“For weeks now, people across the country have been rightly outraged by the spectacle of masked ICE recruits and other federal agents acting with impunity and engaging in tactics that seem designed to intimidate, harass, provoke and endanger the residents of a major American city.” 

It went on to say: “The Trump administration seem eager to escalate the situation and have tried to explain the shootings of Pretti and Renee Good without any serious investigation – and that appear to be directly contradicted by video evidence and this has to stop.” 

Clinton’s “history shaping actions” statement 

Mr Clinton has described events in Minneapolis as “horrible scenes” which “I never thought would take place in America.” 

In a post on X, he highlighted people including children who have been “seized from their homes” as well as “peaceful protesters” that have been arrested, beaten, tear-gassed, and “most searingly, in the cases of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, shot and killed.” 

He added: “All of this is unacceptable and should have been avoided” and called the moment one of a few over the course of a lifetime where “the decisions we make and actions we take will shape our history for years to come.”

Former vice-president speaks out

Paying tribute to Alex Pretti, former US Vice-President Kamala Harris, said: “His final act before he was killed by federal agents was doing everything in his power to protect his community.

“Alex and tens of thousands of Minnesotans have boldly defended their neighbours against the murderous occupation of an American city by the federal government. I am enraged and heartbroken for Alex, his family, Minneapolis, and America.”

Outrageous “domestic terrorist” claim 

Mr Trump was adamant that Pretti was armed and carrying two extra magazines at the time of the shooting. White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller went further than other members of the administration, calling Pretti a “would-be assassin” who “tried to murder federal law enforcement,” adding that he is a “domestic terrorist.”

The Homeland Security Sec. Kristi Noem suggested that the victim who was armed and “violently resisted” arrest and that the federal agent only fired his weapon “fearing for his life.” Video evidence clearly contradicts that version of events. 

Unarmed attack

The shooting occurred in south Minneapolis and Greg Bovino, the Border Patrol commander, said agents had been carrying out a “targeted” immigration enforcement operation, when Pretti approached agents with a “9mm semi-automatic” handgun. Mr Bovino claimed that his agents attempted to disarm him and he “violently resisted”.

The commander said a Border Patrol officer then “fired defensive shots” adding that it looked like a situation where “an individual wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement.”

He was unable to provide any evidence probably because all the video footage that has come to light supports the narrative that Mr Pretti was attacked and essentially killed whilst unarmed.

Phone not gun

Videos from the moments before the shooting show Mr Pretti filming agents with his phone in the middle of the street. From one angle, an agent appears to push a woman and when the camera pans back to Mr Pretti, he is seen with his arm around her.

The agent then pushes back at a second woman whilst at the same time the victim reaches his arm out and stands between her and the agent and is subsequently sprayed in the eyes with a substance. At no time is a gun visible in his hand, he simply appears to be clutching a phone.

10 shots fired

Another video from a different angle shows the agent grabbing Mr Pretti by the arm, before more agents get involved and he is brought to the ground, with at least six agents on top of him.

One agent can be seen striking at his head repeatedly before a split second later another agent standing beside him opens fire.

The agents jump back from Mr Pretti who is lying on the ground and the firing continues. A total of 10 gunshots are heard.

Witness in shocking revelation

A witness, who is an unnamed doctor, insisted that the pack of agents were more interested in counting the number of hits the victim suffered, rather than administering any CPR. 

“As I approached, I saw that the victim was lying on his side and was surrounded by several ICE agents. I was confused as to why the victim was on his side, because that is not standard practice when a victim has been shot. I asked the ICE agents if the victim had a pulse, and they said they did not know!”

He said Mr Pretti had “at least three bullet wounds in his back” as well as an additional wound on his upper left chest, and another possible gunshot wound on his neck. 

“From what I could tell the victim was not actively threatening ICE agents or the public, he was just yelling at the agents because he objected to ICE’s presence in our city.”

Injunction granted

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has demanded “a full, impartial, and transparent investigation” into the shooting after viewing video footage which shows no evidence to support the claim he used any armed force to threaten agents.

A federal judge has also blocked the Trump administration from “destroying or altering evidence” related to the shooting. The new ruling came after the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office and the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension filed a lawsuit to prevent the destruction of evidence in the case. 

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, names DHS, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) and U.S. Border Control as defendants. 

In granting the temporary injunction, Judge Eric Tostrud wrote that federal officials and those acting on their behalf cannot destroy evidence taken from the scene of the south Minneapolis shooting or now in their exclusive custody, which state authorities say they were previously barred from inspecting.

Anger of victim’s parents

Mr Pretti’s parents, Michael and Susan Pretti, were understandably “heartbroken, but also very angry”. They condemned the version of events presented by law enforcement as “sickening lies” which are “reprehensible and disgusting”. 

Their statement called their son “a kind-hearted soul who cared deeply for his family and friends and also the American veterans whom he cared for as an ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital.” 

They pointed out that “Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs. He has his phone in his right hand and his empty left hand is raised above his head while trying to protect the woman ICE just pushed down all while being pepper sprayed.”

No criminal record

His mother went on to say: “He hated that, you know, people were just trashing the land. He was an outdoorsman, he loved this country, but he hated what people were doing to it.”

The family have no history of trouble, other than a handful of traffic tickets and Alex Pretti had no criminal record at all and according to all who knew him, he had never been physically confrontational.