US Border Patrol agents placed on leave after deadly Minnesota shooting

Two US Border Patrol agents involved in the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti have been placed on administrative leave, Customs and Border Protection said, as scrutiny intensifies over the Trump administration’s immigration-enforcement operations in Minnesota.

The move is “standard protocol” after an officer-involved shooting, a CBP spokesperson said without providing additional details about the status of the investigation.

The development came as the White House escalated its warnings to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey over his refusal to co-operate with federal immigration enforcement.

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday (Washington time) that New York and other Democratic-led cities were “heading in the wrong direction”, even as his administration has said it wants to de-escalate tensions in Minnesota.

Pretti’s killing on January 24 ignited widespread criticism, including from Republicans. Democrats are threatening to block funding for the Department of Homeland Security unless restrictions are placed on enforcement operations.

An intensive care nurse, Pretti was the second US citizen killed by federal agents in Minneapolis during confrontations over Trump’s enforcement surge.

Pretti was legally carrying a gun at the time of the encounter, but available video didn’t show him brandishing the weapon. Video appeared to show agents had disarmed him before he was shot.

Renee Good, a mother of three, was shot and killed on January 7.

State and local officials have called for independent investigations into both killings and for a reduction in the federal presence, warning that aggressive enforcement tactics risk further loss of life.

It comas after some federal agents left Minneapolis and Trump send his border tsar, Tom Homan, to take over ICE operations in the city as he shifted strategy amid ongoing unrest and growing political backlash.

Homan effectively replaced Border Patrol commander-at-large Greg Bovino, who had been the face of the special enforcement operation in Minneapolis and attracted criticism for saying – without evidence – that it looked like Pretti intended to “massacre” officers.

Bloomberg