A 37-year-old man was shot and killed Saturday morning in Minneapolis -- the second shooting of a U.S. citizen this month by federal agents in the city.
The shooting of Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse, ratcheted up tensions, as protesters clashed in the streets with law enforcement in the aftermath of the shooting.
The incident followed the fatal shooting of Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother, on Jan. 7.
VA Secretary blames state, local officials for their 'refusal to cooperate'
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins has issued a statement confirming that Alex Pretti, who federal agents fatally shot on Saturday, was a nurse at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, and Collins offered his condolences to the Pretti family.
A photograph of 37-year-old Alex Pretti can be seen at a makeshift memorial in the area where he was shot dead by federal immigration agents earlier in the day in Minneapolis, Minnesota, January 24, 2026.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images
Collins went on to blame state and local officials, saying in his statement, “Such tragedies are unfortunately happening in Minnesota because of state and local officials’ refusal to cooperate with the federal government to enforce the law and deport dangerous illegal criminals.”
-ABC News’ Nicholas Kerr
Jan 25, 2026, 6:13 PM EST
Trump blames Democrats for killings of US citizens by federal agents
President Donald Trump said on social media that Alex Pretti and Renee Good were killed by federal agents because of "Democrat ensued chaos."
"Democrats are putting Illegal Alien Criminals over Taxpaying, Law-Abiding Citizens, and they have created dangerous circumstances for EVERYONE involved," he wrote. "Tragically, two American Citizens have lost their lives as a result of this Democrat ensued chaos."
People pay their respects during a candlelight vigil for Alex Pretti after he was shot and killed earlier in the day, January 24, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Trump said he's asking Congress for "immediate" legislation banning sanctuary cities.
Trump also called on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and "EVERY Democrat Governor and Mayor" in America to "formally cooperate with the Trump Administration to enforce our Nation’s Laws, rather than resist and stoke the flames of Division, Chaos, and Violence."
Trump outlined four steps is requesting. He said, "1. Governor Walz and Mayor Frey should turn over all Criminal Illegal Aliens that are currently incarcerated in their State Prisons and Jails to Federal Authorities, along with all Illegal Criminals with an active warrant or known Criminal History, for Immediate Deportation. 2. State and Local Law Enforcement must agree to turn over all Illegal Aliens arrested by Local Police. 3. Local Police must assist Federal Law Enforcement in apprehending and detaining Illegal Aliens who are wanted for Crimes. 4. Democrat Politicians must partner with the Federal Government to protect American Citizens in the rapid removal of all Criminal Illegal Aliens in our Country."
-ABC News’ Hannah Demissie and Nicholas Kerr
Jan 25, 2026, 5:54 PM EST
Lawyer representing Renee Good's family calls 2nd fatal shooting 'heartbreaking'
"The events of this weekend in Minneapolis are terrifying, deeply disturbing, and heartbreaking -- with yet another U.S. citizen losing their life while taking part in the time-honored and Constitutionally protected activity of being present to observe and peacefully advocate for their beliefs," attorney Antonio Romanucci said in a statement.
Good, a 37-year-old mother and Minneapolis resident, was shot and killed by a federal agent on Jan. 7. Federal officials say that the agents acted in self-defense after Good tried to ram them with her car in what they have labeled an act of domestic terrorism. Local officials have disputed that characterization.
Romanucci's statement comes a day after a 37-year-old man was shot and killed Saturday morning in Minneapolis, the second shooting of a U.S. citizen this month by federal agents in the city.
The Department of Homeland Security alleged that Pretti approached Border Patrol agents with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun, and "violently resisted" when agents tried to disarm him. Local officials have disputed that characterization.
"We urge all Americans to trust their own eyes as they interpret the horrific video, and to call for an absolute end to ICE activity in Minneapolis," Romanucci said. "ICE agents can leave Minneapolis. The residents of Minnesota cannot. We call for a complete and immediate end to the ICE invasion of this beautiful American city."
Jan 25, 2026, 5:42 PM EST
Childhood friend of Alex Pretti remembers him as 'extremely kind'
In an interview with ABC News' Minneapolis affiliate KSTP, a childhood friend of Alex Pretti, the 37-year-old man shot and killed by a federal agent in Minneapolis, reflects on growing up with him.
Travis Vanden Heuvel said "tragedy became devastation" when he found out that it was Pretti, an ICU nurse at a VA hospital, who was fatally shot by a Border Patrol agent Saturday morning.
"He was someone who was extremely kind, who was always putting himself in service to others. I mean, even as an 11,12-year-old boy, he was someone who asked how you were doing," Vanden Heuvel said.
"He was someone who could light up a room. People gravitated towards him and his energy. ... It didn't surprise me years later to learn that he would go on to become a nurse and continue to serve people in, you know, a loving and giving spirit that I knew of him when we were just kids," Vanden Heuvel added.
