Dean Cain says Alex Pretti wasn’t 'peaceful protester', resisted while armed before shooting

WASHINGTON, DC: Actor Dean Cain, best known for playing Superman on 'Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,' publicly defended ICE and Border Patrol agents involved in the controversial shooting death of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.

Cain, 59, criticized those condemning federal agents and argued that Pretti’s actions before the shooting were dangerous. Notably, he became an honorary ICE officer in August after the Department of Homeland Security removed the upper age limit for new hires.

Dean Cain criticizes the way Alex Pretti engaged with ICE agents

MAGA’s favorite Superman, Dean Cain, defended ICE and Border Patrol agents after the deadly shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.

Cain told TMZ on Monday, January 26, that Pretti was not a peaceful protester and criticized the way he engaged with federal law enforcement. “He certainly wasn’t there just being a peaceful protester,” Cain said. “And it was a very bad idea to engage physically with federal law enforcement while armed. He’s standing between law enforcement officers and that woman. That’s a mistake in its own right. And doing it while armed is a bad, bad idea.”

Cain argued that Pretti was “committing a felony” at the time he was shot 10 times by Border Patrol agents and claimed Pretti was part of the “100% organized opposition” to ICE agents in Minneapolis. He emphasized that many questions still need answers about the incident.

“There’s a lot of questions that need to be answered. He may have been impeding. He may have become himself a target just for you know, standing in front of—maybe it was standing in front of ICE vehicles. I don’t know," Cain said.

To put Pretti’s death in context, the 37-year-old was legally carrying a concealed handgun in a holster at his hip when Border Patrol agents shot him. Video of the incident shows federal agents tackling Pretti, spraying him with a chemical agent, and then firing 10 shots as he appeared to be unarmed at the time.

Dean Cain accuses Minnesota officials of encouraging people to fight against ICE agents

Actor and ICE supporter Dean Cain placed no blame on federal immigration agents for the shooting of Alex Pretti and instead faulted Minneapolis and Minnesota leaders. 

“The truth of this is it really falls on the shoulders of Governor Waltz, Mayor Fry, and all the city and state officials who are not cooperating with ICE and who are turning and calling them Gestapo and modern-day Nazis,” Cain said.

Cain accused those officials of encouraging residents to confront federal agents directly. "That rhetoric is emboldening people, and they’re telling them to fight them in the streets and do these things. That is the root cause of the problem,” Cain said.

TMZ founder Harvey Levin pushed back on Cain’s claim and said he had never heard a government official tell civilians to fight federal agents. “I have never heard the governor or the mayor say ‘fight them in the streets,’” Levin said.

Cain rejected that correction and insisted otherwise. “I have. ‘Fight them. Fight them.’ Yes, I have. I’ve seen clips of it,” Cain responded.

Cain went on to argue that Pretti was “asking for trouble” and praised ICE officers, calling them “wonderful, fantastic, lovely people.” He said many agents face intense pressure and criticism from the media and from political leaders such as Governor Walz and Mayor Frey. 

“I know so many of them, and they are under so much pressure and so much attack through the media, through Governor Walz, through Mayor Frey. These officers and agents are under incredible pressure,” Cain said.

Cain added that carrying a firearm and physically engaging law enforcement only increases risk in tense situations. “The last thing you want to do in a situation like that is have a firearm, be in that situation, put your hands on law enforcement in any way, shape, or form, because you’re asking for trouble,” he said.