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By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
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Vice President JD Vance has declined to apologize to the family of Alex Pretti after sharing claims describing him as an "assassin."
Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, was fatally shot by federal agents in Minneapolis in January during an enforcement raid.
Last month, Vance reshared a post on X from White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller that said: "An assassin tried to murder federal agents and this is your response."
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When asked in an interview with the Daily Mail to apologize for endorsing the comments, Vance said this week: "For what?"
"If something is determined that the guy who shot Alex Pretti did something bad, then a lot of consequences are going to flow from that. We'll let that happen…I don't think it's smart to prejudge the investigation," he said.
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Why It Matters
Pretti's death came after Renee Nicole Good, a mother of three, was also killed by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis in January. Authorities have placed the agents involved in the shootings on administrative leave as investigations continue.
The killings have sparked national outrage and protests. Civil rights groups and local officials are calling for accountability and changes to federal enforcement practices, while the Department of Homeland Security announced body-camera requirements for immigration officers in the city.
What To Know
Videos of Pretti’s death circulated widely across social media in the hours following the shooting, challenging the narrative presented by federal authorities and increasing public scrutiny of the federal response.
The medical examiner's report lists multiple gunshot wounds as the cause of Pretti's death, with the manner of death classified as homicide. The report notes that he died in the emergency room of the hospital to which he was transported, and states that the injuries were sustained from being shot by law enforcement officers.
Vance defended his position**,** telling the Daily Mail: "I'm not going to prejudge these guys. I think that everybody is deserved the presumption of innocence in the American system of justice. That's how it's going to work."
He added: "If they find out that he violated the law, of course, you should face consequences for violating the law. But I'm not going to engage in conjecture about the different permutations of how this or that officer might have violated the law.
"Let's do the investigation. Let's figure out, did these officers have a reasonable fear of Alex Pretti given what happened? Did they engage in lawful conduct or unlawful conduct? Let's let the investigation determine those things."
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Government records obtained by ProPublica identify the two federal immigration agents involved in Pretti's death as 43-year-old Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and 35-year-old Customs and Border Protection officer Raymundo Gutierrez.
Video surfaced after his death showing a man believed to be Pretti spitting and kicking the taillight of a government SUV as agents prepared to leave. The vehicle stops, officers exit, and force him to the ground. The agents then deploy chemical irritants while bystanders shout, honk horns, and record the scene on their phones. In the footage, what appears to be a handgun is visible in Pretti’s waistband, similar to other recordings from the day he was killed, though he is never seen reaching for it, and it is unclear whether the federal agents noticed it.
A colleague of Alex Pretti told previously Newsweek that he "wasn’t looking for trouble" when he was fatally shot by federal agents.
Dr. Aasma Shaukat, a physician and clinical researcher who first hired Pretti as a research assistant in 2014, described him as "the kindest, sweetest human" and said she was devastated by his death.
What People Are Saying
Alex Pretti's parents previously said in a joint statement: "The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump's murdering and cowardly ICE thugs. He had 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."
President Donald Trump told reporters on January 27: "We're doing a big investigation. I want to see the investigation. I’m going to be watching over it. I want a very honorable and honest investigation. I have to see it myself."
What Happens Next
The Department of Homeland Security and the FBI are both investigating the shooting, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection is conducting its own internal review of the incident.
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