Witness fears retaliation after narrating Alex Pretti's death in federal court filing: 'I feel afraid'

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: An unnamed witness laid out a chilling account of the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minneapolis in a federal court filing submitted late Saturday, Jan 24.

The witness, whose identity was redacted in court documents, described how immigration agents used pepper spray on three people who were observing the scene before things spiraled.

Witness recounts chaos before fatal shooting

According to the filing, an agent shoved a woman to the ground and that Pretti was simply trying to help her get back up. “More agents came over and grabbed the man who was still trying to help the woman get up,” the witness wrote.

The witness said agents then forced Pretti to the ground. She insisted that his actions did not appear aggressive. “It didn't look like he was trying to resist, just trying to help the woman up,” the witness said.

What followed was sudden and violent. “They threw him to the ground. Four or five agents had him on the ground, and they just started shooting him,” the witness said. “They shot him so many times.”

The witness said they captured video footage that “accurately depicts the events leading up to the agents shooting him and several minutes afterwards.”

The declaration was filed by the ACLU of Minnesota as part of an emergency motion seeking to lift a stay on a federal judge’s order that barred immigration agents from arresting protesters or using nonlethal weapons against them.

The witness, however, fears retaliation. "I feel afraid," she said. "Only hours have passed since they shot a man right in front of me, and I don't feel like I can go home because I heard agents were looking for me. I don't know what the agents will do when they find me," she added.

Alex Pretti's family chimes in

Born and raised in Illinois, Pretti worked at the Department of Veterans Affairs and had been deeply troubled by President Trump’s immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, his family told KSAT.

According to his father, Michael Pretti, the 37-year-old had been actively involved in anti-ICE protests following the January 7 shooting of Renee Good. “He felt that doing the protesting was a way to express that, you know, his care for others,” Michael Pretti told the outlet.

But concern had been mounting at home. Michael Pretti said he had warned his son just weeks earlier to stay cautious while protesting. “We had this discussion with him two weeks ago or so, you know, that go ahead and protest, but do not engage, do not do anything stupid, basically,” his father said. “And he said he knows that. He knew that.”

The family said they did not learn of Pretti’s death through officials, but through reporters.

After seeing a video circulating on social media of a man being shot who appeared to be his son, Michael Pretti said he tried desperately to get answers from authorities in Minnesota.

“I can’t get any information from anybody,” he told KSAT. “The police, they said, call Border Patrol, Border Patrol’s closed, the hospitals won’t answer any questions?”

The family said they were only able to confirm Pretti’s death after contacting the Hennepin County Medical Examiner.

Gun ownership and colleague’s reaction

Local officials later described Pretti as a lawful gun owner with a concealed carry permit.

His family acknowledged that Pretti owned a handgun and had a permit to carry a concealed weapon in Minnesota, but said they had never known him to actually carry it.

The shooting also sparked an emotional response from one of Pretti’s colleagues.

Dimitri Drekonja, the chief of infectious diseases at the Minneapolis VA and a coworker of Pretti’s, took to Bluesky on Saturday to condemn the officer involved.

“He was a good, kind person who lived to help, and these f*****s executed him,” Drekonja fumed.