Video: ICE agents pepper-spraying, shoots nurse during Minneapolis raid
Abdullateef Fowewe
Newly released bystander footage has ignited outrage after ICE agents fatally shot Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, during an immigration raid in Minneapolis on Saturday.
The graphic video captures Pretti pepper-sprayed while filming the operation and attempting to aid a woman who had been pushed to the ground.
The stabilised clip, shared widely on social media from multiple angles, depicts Pretti stepping in to help before agents swarm him. Seven officers pin him to his knees in a chaotic takedown.
Crucially, one agent is seen securing Pretti’s handgun seconds before the shots ring out, directly contradicting initial ICE statements claiming an “immediate threat.”
This detail aligns with eyewitness reports that Pretti resisted after blocking a federal vehicle with his body.
The killing has sparked immediate protests and candlelight vigils across the city, with Pretti’s family calling for full transparency and an independent investigation.
“Alex was a healer, not a threat,” his sister told reporters outside Hennepin County Medical Center.
Reactions remain divided: supporters of federal authority praise ICE for handling a “resisting armed individual,” while critics decry the escalation as reminiscent of Minneapolis’ troubled policing history, including the 2020 George Floyd murder that led to global unrest.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey urged calm but acknowledged the video’s disturbing nature, stating, “We need answers before tensions boil over again.”
The incident occurred amid heightened ICE activity in the area, targeting undocumented immigrants in a local warehouse district.
