New video analysis by CNN is raising troubling questions about the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by federal immigration officers in Minneapolis. The footage appears to show that an officer removed a gun from Pretti just moments before he was shot multiple times by other officers.
Bystander videos captured the moments as several officers tried to restrain Pretti on the street. In one clip, an agent can be seen reaching into the group of officers and pulling out a gun from Pretti’s waistband. The weapon, according to CNN, matched the firearm that the Department of Homeland Security later said belonged to Pretti.
As the officers struggle to pin him down, voices can be heard shouting, “he’s got a gun.” Just over one second after the officer emerges holding the weapon, a gunshot is heard. At least nine more shots follow soon after, according to the videos reviewed by CNN.
Video raises serious questions over fatal shooting of Alex Pretti
The footage shows that the officer who retrieved the gun had nothing in his hands before approaching Pretti. It is not clear from the videos whether that officer immediately told the others that the weapon had been removed.
In one image obtained by CNN, a federal officer wearing a grey jacket is seen pulling the gun from Pretti’s waistband and then walking away from the group. About a minute after the shooting, as Pretti’s body lies motionless on the street, another officer is heard asking, “Where’s the gun?” The officer who took it responds, “I got the gun.” It remains unclear which agent fired the first shot.
DHS defends officers, says shooting was out of fear
In a statement, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the officer who fired believed his life was in danger. “The officers attempted to disarm the suspect, but the armed suspect violently resisted,” McLaughlin said. “Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots.”
She added that paramedics tried to help Pretti, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. However, CNN’s review of multiple videos shows that at no point does Pretti appear to be holding a gun. Earlier in the encounter, he is seen holding a cellphone in one hand. Videos also show officers using pepper spray on him before forcing him to the ground.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said during a press conference that Pretti was believed to be a lawful gun owner who had a permit to carry. CNN law enforcement analyst Charles Ramsey, the former police commissioner of Philadelphia and Washington, DC, reviewed the videos and said the shooting did not appear justified.
“From what I see right now, this does not look like a justified shooting,” Ramsey said. “The guy is prone on the sidewalk… and they’re still firing rounds into him.”
Moments before shooting of Alex Pretti
The videos show tensions rising in a south Minneapolis neighbourhood where federal agents were conducting an operation. Around two minutes before shots were fired, officers are seen detaining another person as bystanders blow whistles, honk car horns, and record the scene.
Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse at a Minneapolis VA hospital, according to his family, is first seen standing in the street. He is holding his phone and recording the officers while using his other hand to direct traffic. At one point, he yells at an officer, “Do not push them into the traffic!”
Moments later, the officer walks toward Pretti and the other bystanders and pushes a woman to the ground. Pretti steps between the officer and the woman. The officer then sprays Pretti with a chemical irritant and drags him to his knees. Several more agents quickly rush in. Officers push Pretti to the ground as he appears to resist. One agent appears to strike Pretti repeatedly while he is on the ground.