Federal officials have placed the two federal agents involved in the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti on administrative leave, according to multiple reports.
MS Now and The New York Times first reported on the development, citing anonymous sources.
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Officials said the two agents, a Border Patrol agent and a Customs and Border Protection officer, were placed on leave Saturday, the same day as the shooting. Officials said the move was “standard protocol.” This contradicts what U.S. Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino previously said. On Sunday, he said the agents were still on duty but he had deployed them outside Minneapolis.
The killing of Pretti has sparked a much different tone and reaction than the reaction after ICE agents killed Renee Good weeks before. Those in President Donald Trump’s own party have called for independent investigations into Pretti’s killing. The killing also sparked debates among Second Amendment groups since Pretti was carrying a concealed handgun when agents shot him.
Actions after fatal shooting
Following Pretti’s shooting, Trump appointed “border czar” Tom Homan to lead ICE operations in Minnesota, sidelining Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. The secretary, who defended Trump’s decision to send in Homan, is now facing calls to resign or face impeachment.
Despite this, Trump has said Noem will remain as secretary and that she’s doing a “very good job,” according to Fox News.
Bovino, who quickly became the face of major ICE operations, has also stepped away from Minnesota after the shootings. The administration did not explain its reasoning for the decision.
Since Pretti’s shooting, protests against ICE and the White House’s immigration enforcement have happened every day. On Wednesday, Attorney General Pam Bondi posted on social media, saying federal agents arrested 16 people. She said they had allegedly assaulted federal agents. In follow-up posts, she provided images of most of those arrested and their names.
Bondi said more arrests are coming.
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again,” she wrote in her post. “NOTHING will stop President Trump and this Department of Justice from enforcing the law.”
