Trump Official Struggles with Answers About Killing of ICU Nurse, Says ‘the Victims Are the Border Patrol Agents’ By Desiree Anello

After Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal officers in Minneapolis, Gregory Bovino, the U.S. Border Patrol’s commander-at-large, claimed that the 37-year-old ICU nurse “put himself in that situation.”

“The victims are the Border Patrol agents — I’m not blaming the Border Patrol agents,” Bovino said while speaking to Dana Bash on CNN’s State of the Union. “The suspect put himself in that situation. The victims are the Border Patrol agents there.”

Bovino continued, “What we need to take a look at here is the situation in its totality, what happened leading up to this situation.”

“The suspect decided to inject himself into a law enforcement action,” he added. “What’s not being said here is the fact that Border Patrol agents and law enforcement are conducting a targeted law enforcement effort against a violent illegal alien that was nearby and that suspect injected himself into that law enforcement situation with a weapon.”

Later in the interview, Bash claimed that, according to photos and videos from the incident, Pretti’s gun was taken before he was fatally shot. However, Bovino said he remained a threat even after “de-escalation techniques” were used by law enforcement — though he struggled to explain what it was about Pretti’s behavior that made him threatening.

“He was in the scene actively impeding and assaulting law enforcement,” he noted. “He was there for a reason and that reason was to impede law enforcement.”

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“What our officers are faced with here in Minneapolis are chaotic, very difficult and violent situations in which individuals — and this suspect is not the only one to bring a loaded weapon to a riot — the situations are chaotic and ever-changing,” Bovino continued. “Follow directions of law enforcement, don’t inject yourself knowingly beforehand into a law enforcement situation.”

On the day of the incident, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claimed in a social media statement that an individual “approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun” and “violently resisted” as they attempted to disarm him. The agency added that an agent then “fired defensive shots” at the Pretti. 

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However, as seen in footage verified by The New York Times, Pretti can be seen standing among a group of protesters while holding only his phone in one hand as an agent squirts pepper spray at the group. He was then approached by several agents and pinned to the sidewalk.

Pretti’s gun appeared to have already been unholstered by an agent before he was shot in the back, according to the Times. He sustained at least 10 gunshots fired within five seconds. 

While Bash pointed out during the Jan. 25 interview that Pretti did not appear to “brandish” a weapon in any footage obtained from the incident, Bovino emphasized that ongoing investigations would provide answers to any remaining questions. 

“We do know that the suspect did bring a weapon, a loaded 9-millimeter high-capacity handgun, to a riot,” Bovino said. “We do know that as far as what happened in that intervening moment, with the video that you just showed, that’s going to come to light through the investigation that’s being investigated, and those facts and those questions will be answered soon enough.”