2 federal agents shot when Alex Pretti was killed in Minneapolis: US official
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Two police officers shot during an encounter with ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, a US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) official told Congress in a memo sent Tuesday.
Police tried to detain Pretti and he refused, leading to a struggle, according to a memo to Congress obtained by The Associated Press. During the struggle, the Border Patrol agent yelled, “You’ve got a gun!” many times, said the official.
A Border Patrol officer and a CBP officer fired Glock handguns, the notice said. (The US Border Patrol is a federal agency under CBP.)
Investigators from CBP’s Office of Professional Conduct conducted an analysis based on a review of body-worn camera footage and agency documents, the notice said. The law requires the agency to notify the appropriate congressional committees of a death in CBP custody within 72 hours.
The announcement came a day after US President Donald Trump ordered border chief Tom Homan to take over immigration enforcement in Minnesota following Pretti’s death, which was the second homicide in Minneapolis this month of a person at the hands of law enforcement.
Andrew Chang explains why US Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino is leaving Minnesota as President Donald Trump shakes up his leadership to reduce immigration — following the involvement of ICE agents in a second fatal shooting in Minneapolis. Photos provided by The Canadian Press, Reuters and Getty Images
ICE agents are trying to break into the Ecuadorian embassy
Ecuador’s Foreign Minister, meanwhile, filed a protest with the US Embassy after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents tried to enter the Ecuadorian embassy in Minneapolis without permission on Tuesday.
Video of the attempt on social media shows an embassy employee running to the door to shoo away ICE agents, telling them, “This is the embassy of Ecuador. You are not allowed in.” One ICE officer can be heard responding by threatening to “arrest” the worker if he contacts an agent before agreeing to leave.
International law generally prohibits law enforcement authorities from entering foreign embassies or embassies without permission, although permission may sometimes be granted for life-threatening emergencies, such as fire.
“Embassy officials immediately prevented the ICE officer from entering the embassy building, thus ensuring the protection of the Ecuadorians present at the time and activating the emergency policies issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Migration,” the Department wrote in X.
A “notice of protest” has been filed at the US Embassy in Ecuador so that similar efforts can be made at other consulates, the Department said. The Departments of State, Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to AP requests for comment.
