On Tuesday, the Trump administration informed Congress about a “preliminary review” regarding the shooting of 37-year-old Alex Preti by a Border Patrol agent. This included new information about the circumstances leading up to the incident and details about the officer involved.
Preti, who worked as an ICU nurse for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, was fatally shot by a Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis while he was filming a federal immigration operation on Saturday.
Footage showed him attempting to assist a woman who had been shoved to the ground by an agent. In the video, he was also seen being sprayed with an irritant, knocked down, and beaten.
It appeared in the video that an agent pulled what looked like a 9mm pistol from Preti’s waistband before another agent fired almost 10 rounds at him.
A report by the Border Patrol’s Office of Professional Responsibility noted that two agents fired at Preti. One used a CBP-issued Glock 19, while the other used a Glock 47. The report confirmed that there is body camera footage of the incident, but it’s uncertain whether this will be made public.
Timeline of Events Reported to Congress
On Saturday morning, Border Patrol Agents (BPAs) and Customs and Border Protection Officers (CBPOs) were conducting operations near Nicollet Street and 26th Street as part of Operation Metro Surge.
According to the report, several people in the vicinity were “screaming and blowing whistles.” The BPAs and CBPOs asked civilians to stay off sidewalks and roadways. Things escalated around 9 a.m. when two women confronted a CBPO.
The officers instructed the women to clear the road, but they did not comply.
In witness footage, a CBPO pushed the women away, and one woman then ran toward Preti. As the officers attempted to remove both the woman and Preti from the road, the CBPO deployed pepper spray at them.
The report mentioned that as Border Patrol agents tried to detain Preti, he “resisted,” leading to a struggle. During this altercation, an unidentified Border Patrol agent shouted repeatedly, “I’ve got a gun!”
About five seconds later, two federal agents opened fire.
After the shooting, Border Patrol confirmed Preti had a gun and subsequently removed it from his vehicle, according to the report.
At around 9:02 a.m., CBP officers began providing medical assistance by cutting Preti’s clothing and applying chest stickers to the wound. Emergency services arrived approximately three minutes later and took over his care.
Preti was transported to an ambulance around 9:14 a.m. and taken to Hennepin County Medical Center.
He was pronounced dead at around 9:32 a.m., and an autopsy is to be conducted by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The Border Patrol investigative unit plans to request official findings once their inquiry is complete, but neither the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) nor CBP responded immediately to inquiries.
