The Department of Homeland Security said Saturday that the man shot and killed by federal agents died after a defensive struggle while officials were conducting a "targeted operation" seeking an "illegal alien wanted for violent assault."
"An individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun," the agency reported in a statement.
"The officers attempted to disarm the suspect, but the armed suspect violently resisted.
"Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots," the department's statement added.
"Medics on scene immediately delivered medical aid to the subject but [he] was pronounced dead at the scene," the statement read.
The man fatally shot by federal officers in Minneapolishas been identified as Alex Jeffrey Pretti, reports The Star Tribune, citing sources familiar with the investigation.
Pretti, 37, has an address listed in south Minneapolis.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara, who did not report the man's name, identified him as a 37-year-old man with a criminal history that showed some parking tickets and that he was an American citizen and a "lawful gun owner" with a permit.
Records show that Pretti attended the University of Minnesota and was issued a nursing license in 2021 that remains active through March 2026.
Department of Homeland Security officials said that he was allegedly armed with a gun and two magazines, and distributed photos of the weapon.
DHS said the man's weapon had two magazines and that he was carrying "no ID."
The statement did not indicate whether the man was the person being sought by federal agents.
The agency has not released further details about what led up to the shooting, but witnesses said that the agents and the man were in an altercation before shots rang out.
A U.S. official told CBS News that the incident involved federal immigration agents from Customs and Border Protection.
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said Saturday morning that her office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) are working to coordinate the state's response to the shooting, reported The Star Tribune in Minneapolis.
"The scene must be secured by local law enforcement for the collection and preservation of evidence," she said in a statement.
"We expect the federal government to allow the BCA to process the scene," she added.
Moriarty, along with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, is conducting an independent investigation into the Jan. 7 shooting death of Renee Good by ICE agent Jonathan Ross.
The federal government has denied the BCA access to the investigative materials and crime scene after Good's death.
Moriarty on Saturday opened a secure portal so that witnesses can submit video from Saturday morning's shooting, as with the Good shooting.
Meanwhile, tear gas canisters have been fired to push back protesters from the Saturday morning shooting scene, and Minnesota State Patrol troopers have been deployed to keep the protesters away from the federal law enforcement agents.
Several protesters have reportedly been arrested near the scene of the shooting, and dumpsters have been set on fire, according to local reports.
The Minnesota State Patrol has declared an "unlawful assembly" as the crowds continue to gather, reports CBS.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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