Video footage of attack reveals disturbing detail as man shot dead by federal agents identified
It's the second death linked to federal immigration officials in Minneapolis this month
New video footage has revealed some disturbing details from the horrific incident which saw another US citizen shot dead by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis this week.
Just a few weeks after Renee Good was shot and killed by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in the city in Minnesota, another fatal incident saw intensive care unit nurse Alex Pretti shot at the weekend.
The 37-year-old, who was at an anti-ICE protest on Saturday (23 January), was accosted by officials and pinned to the floor before being shot at least 10 times in just five seconds.
Despite Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara suggesting that information was limited, politicians and officials have been quick to place the blame on Pretti following his death, with many suggesting that he was carrying a firearm.
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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Mr Pretti was carrying a semi-automatic handgun and two magazines of ammunition, and implied he 'wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement'.
Although it has later been suggested that Pretti did, in fact, have a legal gun license and was carrying a firearm at the time, video footage certainly doesn't back up those claims, as he is seen with a phone in his hand instead of a visible weapon.
President Donald Trump shared an image of the alleged firearm online and described the victim as a 'gunman', writing: "This is the gunman's gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go.
"What is that all about?"
However, statements from Pretti's family, friends and colleagues all suggest that it would have been totally out of character for him to act in this way, and the disturbing video footage only backs this up.
Mr Pretti's family said 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 added: "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.”
Other bystanders have echoed these claims, stating that Mr Pretti was not brandishing a weapon of any kind and was simply holding a phone, which again contradicts the account of United States Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, who claimed it was his intention to 'kill law enforcement'.
One woman, under the penalty of perjury, said: “I did not see him attack the agents or brandish a weapon of any kind.
“The man did not approach the agents with a gun. He approached them with a camera.”
Meanwhile, Governor of Minnesota Tim Walz called on Trump to 'pull the thousands of violent, untrained officers out of Minnesota', describing the situation as 'sickening'.
Topics: Donald Trump, US News, Politics
James Moorhouse