Minneapolis — A fatal shooting by a federal agent in Minneapolis has intensified scrutiny of President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown after a month marked by five shootings tied to enforcement operations and a surge in deaths in immigration detention.
The man killed Tuesday was identified in local reports as Alex Pretti, 37, a U.S. citizen, registered nurse and licensed gun owner. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said a U.S. Border Patrol agent opened fire after Pretti resisted attempts to disarm him. Local officials and bystanders disputed that account, and videos verified by Reuters show agents pepper spraying Pretti and other protesters as he recorded them on his phone; no weapon is visible. Multiple agents wrestle him to the ground before one draws a gun and several shots are heard.
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The Minneapolis shooting followed the earlier killing of Minnesota woman Renée Good, shot by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer Jonathan Ross. Within hours, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem labeled Good a “domestic terrorist” who tried to ram the officer with her car. DHS has not presented evidence of a terrorism link, and video reviewed by news organizations shows Ross fired as Good’s car moved past him.
The incidents are adding to backlash in Minnesota, where authorities say roughly 3,000 federal agents have been deployed as part of a sweeping enforcement surge. Thousands of protesters braved sub-zero temperatures Friday to demand the withdrawal of federal personnel, which some state and local leaders have described as an occupation.
Nationally, DHS and ICE agents were involved in three other shootings in January, according to agency statements and court filings.
In Portland, Oregon, a Border Patrol agent shot and wounded Venezuelan immigrant Luis Nino-Moncada and a woman passenger during what DHS called a “targeted vehicle stop.” DHS said Nino-Moncada attempted to run over agents before the agent fired. The Justice Department later charged Nino-Moncada with assaulting an officer. The passenger, Yorlenys Zambrano-Contreras, pleaded guilty this week to entering the U.S. illegally in 2023.
On Jan. 15 in Minneapolis, an ICE agent shot Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in the leg after, DHS said, Sosa-Celis and two other men hit an officer with a snow shovel and a broom handle. But an FBI affidavit unsealed this week said officers had scanned a license plate registered to a different person suspected of an immigration violation, leading them to chase the wrong person before the alleged assault and shooting.
The growing use of force has intersected with a spike in deaths in federal custody. At least six people have died in ICE detention since the start of 2026, following at least 30 deaths last year — a two-decade high, according to ICE.
One death drawing particular scrutiny is that of Cuban immigrant Geraldo Lunas Campos. ICE initially said Lunas died Jan. 3 at a detention camp on a U.S. military base in Texas after experiencing “medical distress.” After the Washington Post reported the death would likely be ruled a homicide by the El Paso County medical examiner, DHS issued a new statement saying Lunas attempted suicide, resisted security officers and then died. The medical examiner later found the death was a homicide caused by “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression,” the Post reported.
On Jan. 14, two other detainees died: a Nicaraguan man found unresponsive at the same military base site, known as East Camp Montana, and a Mexican man found unresponsive at a Georgia detention center, according to ICE. ICE said the Nicaraguan man, identified as Victor Manuel Diaz, was presumed to have died by suicide. Two additional deaths were reported in Houston, Philadelphia and Indio, California. Investigations are ongoing.
The administration has dramatically expanded enforcement capacity, with $170 billion budgeted for immigration agencies through September 2029. ICE detention has climbed to record levels, with 69,000 people in custody as of early January, according to agency statistics. About 43% of those detained had no criminal charge or conviction.
The White House has defended the surge as necessary to restore border and interior enforcement. But the string of shootings, conflicting official accounts and rising in-custody deaths have fueled demands from Minnesota officials and civil rights groups for independent investigations, public release of body-camera footage and limits on the use of federal agents in local operations.
Federal authorities have not released the name of the agent involved in Pretti’s death. DHS said the shooting is under review.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
