By Anna Commander and Gabe Whisnant
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A video released Wednesday appears to show Alex Pretti confronting federal immigration officers on a Minneapolis street nearly two weeks before he was fatally shot during a separate encounter with U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told Newsweek via email Wednesday that the agency was reviewing the video.
The video, recorded January 13 and published first by digital outlet The News Movement, shows a man identified as Pretti, 37, engaging with federal agents alongside other protesters. The Movement said the video was independently reviewed by BBC News using facial-recognition technology, which identified the man with a high degree of confidence.
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Newsweek has reached out to the BBC via email Wednesday night for comment.
In the recording, the man is seen kicking the taillight of a government SUV as agents prepared to leave the scene. The vehicle then stops, and officers get out and force the man to the ground. As the confrontation continues, agents deploy chemical irritants while bystanders shout, honk car horns and record the scene on their phones. A handgun appears visible at the man’s waistband, similar to footage taken on the day Pretti was killed.
The footage does not show whether federal officers detained the man identified as Pretti after the January 13 encounter.
"A week before Alex was gunned down in the street—despite posing no threat to anyone—he was violently assaulted by a group of ICE agents," Steve Schleicher, attorney for the Pretti family, told CBS News. "Nothing that happened a full week before could possibly have justified Alex's killing at the hands of ICE on Jan 24."
What People Are Saying
Minneapolis Democratic Mayor Jacob Frey, responding to a question about the video during a CNN Town Hall on Wednesday night: "I actually haven't yet seen the video, but are we actually making the argument that Alex Pretti should be killed for something that happened like 11 days prior to the shooting itself? Nah, I think we should be talking about the circumstances that actually led to the killing and what took place. And those circumstances, I mean, you could believe your own two eyes."
Conservative podcaster Megyn Kelly, on X Wednesday: "Alex Pretti was itching for another confrontation with Border Patrol, whom he’d been stalking, harassing and terrorizing. HE had been victimizing THEM. His felonies are on tape. He was reckless, and it cost him his life. Find another poster boy, illegal-loving Leftists."
Donald Trump Jr., on X Wednesday: "Just a peaceful legal observer." The post also included an emoji of a face with a hand on a chin and an eyebrow raised.
Civil Rights attorney Andrew C Laufer, on X Wednesday: "If this is accurate, law enforcement absolutely had probably [sic] cause to detain, arrest, and charge. Still not enough to deploy deadly force."
What Happens Next
Pretti's family has retained Schleicher, partner at Minneapolis law firm Maslon, who is helping Pretti's parents pro bono, according to a family spokesperson.
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Update 1/28/26, 9:50 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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