Alex J. Pretti, with a backpack, crouches in a forest.Credit: AP

TWO Border Patrol agents involved in the fatal shooting of an ICU nurse have been pulled off the job and placed on administrative leave.

The Department of Homeland Security stressed the move is standard procedure and “should not be viewed as any suspicion of wrongdoing.”

Alex J. Pretti, with a backpack, crouches in a forest.Alex Pretti was shot multiple times by Border Patrol Agents on January 24 in Minneapolis, MinnesotaCredit: AP Federal officers in gas masks and tactical gear move through tear gas during a confrontation in Minneapolis.Two Border Patrol agents involved in the fatal shooting of an ICU nurse have been pulled off the jobCredit: EPA

Minneapolis was still reeling on Monday after was shot dead during a confrontation with federal agents over the weekend.

A government report sent to Congress and obtained by CBS News said two US Customs and Border Protection agents fired their weapons.

The report did not say Pretti reached for his firearm.

officials said Pretti was a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry and had no criminal record.

CBS News reported that some of the Border Patrol agents at the scene had body cameras, according to two US officials.

Fresh focus has fallen on the video filmed by local witness Stella Carlson, who said she was headed to paint children’s faces at a church when she stumbled onto the chaos.

Carlson told CNN she had spent weeks joining grassroots efforts to warn neighbors about impending immigration action, after the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE officer earlier this month.

“I know every time I leave my vehicle or leave my house and I put that whistle around my neck, I know because of Renee Good, the risk,” she told CNN’s Anderson Cooper Tuesday.

“I think we all knew after that happened, it is now at that point, and it could be any of us.”

Carlson said she drove down and saw what she described as a brawl in the street, then noticed Pretti directing traffic.

She got out of her car and started recording, wearing a pink jacket that later stood out in other footage from the scene.

Carlson said her video showed Pretti never brandished his gun, contradicting an early claim from DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, and she said she didn’t even know he was armed until after he was shot.

She also said the footage undercut claims from Stephen Miller that Pretti approached law enforcement intending to assassinate them.

The video also shows, Carlson said, that Pretti’s handgun was removed from its holster by an officer seconds before he was pinned down and shot multiple times, including in his back.

Immigration Crisis

  • Jan. 27 – Southern Pima County, Arizona: One person was shot in an incident involving Border Patrol and was flown to a trauma center in critical condition.
  • Jan. 24 – Minneapolis, Minnesota: Alex Pretti was fatally shot by U.S. Border Patrol during a federal operation.
  • Jan. 14 – Minneapolis, Minnesota: Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis was shot and injured in an incident involving an ICE officer, according to court reporting and DHS statements.
  • Jan. 8 – Portland, Oregon: Luis David Nino Moncada and Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras were shot and injured by U.S. Border Patrol during a traffic stop, court filings show.
  • Jan. 7 – Minneapolis, Minnesota: Renee Good was fatally shot by ICE officer Jonathan Ross, sparking protests and scrutiny of DHS use of force.
  • Dec. 24, 2025 — Glen Burnie, Maryland: Tiago Alexandre Sousa-Martins injured — ICE officer (unnamed)
  • Dec. 11, 2025 — Starr County, Texas: Isaias Sanchez Barboza killed — CBP agent (unnamed)
  • Oct. 30, 2025 — Ontario, California: Carlos Jimenez injured — ICE officer (unnamed)
  • Oct. 29, 2025 — Phoenix: Jose Garcia-Sorto injured — ICE officer (unnamed)
  • Oct. 21, 2025 — Los Angeles: Carlitos Ricardo Parias injured — ICE officer (unnamed)
  • Oct. 4, 2025 — (Place not specified): Marimar Martinez injured — CBP agent Charles Exum
  • Sept. 12, 2025 — Franklin Park, Illinois: Silverio Villegas González, 38, killed — ICE officer (unnamed)

Videos from the scene verified by CBS show Pretti holding a phone in his right hand, with nothing in his left, moments before he was shot.

Multiple videos also show a federal agent in a gray jacket reaching into the scuffle empty-handed and coming out with a gun in his right hand.

The footage shows the agent turning away as the first shot is fired, then running across the street as more shots ring out.

The administrative leave move surfaced as DHS leadership faced renewed pressure over the fallout from the killing.

The developments came a day after Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino was demoted, with sources saying he was expected to depart Minnesota.

Noem was at the White House on Monday facing questions about her department’s handling of the case.

Noem is expected to keep her job, but sources said her focus is set to shift away from interior enforcement operations toward the southern border and other priorities.

also said on social media Monday that he is sending border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota.

Governor Tim Walz’s office confirmed Walz and Homan have met and that they “agreed on the need for an ongoing dialogue.”

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey also met with Homan to discuss next steps, according to the report.

CBS said multiple sources with direct knowledge of the situation warned some inside DHS are increasingly concerned about the agency’s reputation.

Activists are also calling for a “National Shutdown” on Friday to protest US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The talks and internal shifts come as Minnesota leaders push to scale down the federal immigration operation, after Walz and Frey held conversations with Trump about reducing the presence.

Pretti, 37 was shot by Border Patrol agents on January 24.

He was shot at least 10 times in a span of five seconds.

According to video analysis by The New York Times , Pretti was holding a phone in his hand while trying to protect a woman who was pushed by the agent on the ground.

In the video agents can be seen spraying Pretti with a substance as he falls down on the ground, and within seconds he is shot multiple times.

Earlier in January, by ICE agent Jonathan Ross.