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11 days before he was shot and killed by Border Patrol officers, Alex Pretti was captured having an unruly confrontation with federal immigration agents during a Minneapolis protest.
In the now viral video, Pretti, 37, an intensive care nurse at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, could be seen shouting an expletive at the federal officers and struggling with them and kicking out the tail light of their vehicle. He was then forcefully taken to the ground by an ICE agent.
In the video reportedly shot on January 13, Pretti, can be seen either breaking free or the officers letting him go, before he scurries away only to turn his back to the camera, what appears to be a handgun is visible in his waistband.
However, according to The Associated Press, at no point do the videos show Pretti reaching for the gun and it is unclear whether the federal agents saw it.
A person with knowledge of the incident confirmed to AP that the man in the videos is Pretti and that he had told his family of the confrontation.
The new videos from the week before the shooting came from two sources. One, published by the Minnesota Star Tribune and later obtained by the AP, was taken by Max Shapiro, a witness who filmed the interaction. The second was by a crew for The News Movement, an online media outlet.
BBC also verified “whose facial recognition technology confirmed his identify to a 97% degree of accuracy.”
What do the new videos show?
The viral videos show Alex Pretti yelling at federal vehicles, and at one point, he also appears to spit and yell “trash” toward the driver's side of a car with flashing red and blue lights.
As the vehicle pulls slowly away, Pretti kicks at the taillight and then delivers a second kick that shatters the red plastic and leaves the taillight dangling. The rear door of the SUV then swings open and an immigration officer wearing a gas mask and helmet gets out and starts walking toward Pretti.
The officer grabs Pretti's shirt at his chest, pulling him back toward the vehicle as Pretti's arms flail. The officer pulls Pretti back onto the street and down onto his knees, falling over Pretti in the scuffle.
Other masked and helmeted officers surround them and try to subdue Pretti. Others stand guard between them and a screaming crowd, before the officers set off tear gas canisters and withdraw.
After Pretti stumbles away, a man filming approaches and asks if he is OK.
Pretti affirms that he is, before turning to others involved in the melee and asking: “Are we all OK? Are we all safe?”
How was Alex Pretti killed?
Alex Pretti was shoot dead last weekend on a sidewalk next to the street where he was filming immigration officers. In a video taken by bystanders, one officer pushed him, and took him to the ground and a half-dozen officers try to subdue him.
One spots Pretti's weapon, which he was licensed to carry, and shouts, “He's got a gun.” Two officers then open fire and Pretti is killed.
Donald Trump administration officials quickly reacted, saying Pretti had approached officers with a gun and attacked them.
However, according to the AP report, the altercation and shooting was captured in multiple videos and showed that Pretti never brandished his gun and didn't assault any officer. He was holding his phone when he was shot in the back while on the ground.
Homeland Security Investigations “is reviewing” the new videos and incident, a spokesperson with the department said.
It's not known if any of the officers involved were also there when Pretti was killed.
English (US) ·