Woman who filmed footage of fatal Alex Pretti shooting gives harrowing account of what she saw
A woman who filmed footage of the moment anti-ICE protestor Alex Pretti was fatally shot has given a harrowing account of what she saw.
Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse, was shot dead by federal officers in Minneapolis on Saturday, just weeks after fellow protestor Renee Good was killed.
The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been accused of causing terror and chaos across the country in recent months, as Donald Trump's administration continues to target 'illegal aliens'.
Last week saw a five-year-old detained in Minnesota and the people living in the northern US state are unsurprisingly protesting against the harsh treatment, arrests and potential deportations of some of their neighbours.
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On Saturday, Pretti was accused of brandishing a gun at federal agents, with Secretary of Homeland Securit Kristi Noem claiming that he 'wanted to do maximum damage' and 'massacre law enforcement'.
Trump also took to social media to describe Pretti as a gunman and shared a picture of the firearm that was taken from him.
However, a number of videos released of the incident dispute these claims, as it shows the US citizen attempting to protect two women, with only a phone visible in his hand and no gun in sight.
Shockingly, the footage then shows Pretti being forced to the floor, pepper sprayed and then shot more than 10 times in the space of just a few seconds, leaving witnesses horrified.
Now, a woman who was at the scene has shared her account of what happened in a sworn affidavit as evidence in an ongoing lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union against the Trump Administration.
She said: "I decided to check it out on my way to work. I've been involved in observing in my community because it is so important to document what ICE is doing to my neighbours.
"Then he started pepper spraying all three of them directly in the face and all over. The man with the phone put his hands above his head and the agent sprayed him again and pushed him.
"The agents pulled the man on the ground. I didn't see him touch any of them - he wasn't even turned toward them."
While members of the Trump administration also suggested that Pretti was acting aggressively and trying to resist, witnesses also suggest the exact opposite.
The woman, who wanted to remain anonymous, added: "It didn't look like he was trying to resist, just trying to help the woman up. I didn't see him with a gun. They threw him to the ground.
"Four or five agents had him on the ground and they just started shooting him. They shot him so many times.
"I don't know why they shot him. He was only helping. I was five feet from him and they just shot him."
Footage also seems to show Pretti's gun, which was allegedly strapped to his back, taken by a federal agent moments before he was shot, suggesting that he was unarmed and posed no threat before he was killed.
'The woman added: "The man did not approach the agents with a gun. He approached them with a camera. He was just trying to help a woman get up and they took him to the ground.
"I am disgusted and gutted at how they are treating my neighbours and my state."
Pretit's family have also spoken out since his tragic death, suggesting that the nurse, who cared for US veterans at the Minneapolis VA hospital, was a 'kind-hearted soul who cared deeply for his family and friends'.
They said: "The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump's murdering and cowardly ICE thugs.
“He has his phone in his right hand and his empty left hand is raised above his head while trying to protect the woman ICE just pushed down all while being pepper-sprayed.
“Please get the truth out about our son. He was a good man.”
Topics: Donald Trump, US News, Politics
James Moorhouse