Topline
Former President Barack Obama said Saturday’s shooting of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Minneapolis, was a “heartbreaking tragedy” and a “wake-up call” for Americans as he condemned the Trump administration’s handling of shootings in the city—joining professional athletes and celebrities speaking out following Pretti’s death.
Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse, was shot and killed by ICE agents on Saturday.
AFP via Getty Images
Key Facts
In a statement, Obama said the Trump administration “seem eager to escalate the situation,” noting that the official explanations for the deaths of Pretti and Renee Good earlier in January “appear to be directly contradicted by video evidence.”
NBA legend and sportscaster Charles Barkley called the situation “scary,” telling an ESPN panel “it’s already ended badly twice, and somebody’s got to step up and be adults, because, man, two people have died for no reason, it’s just sad”—also referring to the shooting of Renee Good by an ICE agent earlier in January.
The NBA postponed Saturday’s Minnesota Timberwolves game, the league said, in order to “prioritize the safety and security of the Minneapolis community.”
Indiana Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton said Pretti was “murdered,” while former Boston Celtics player Isaiah Thomas chastised the ICE agents for the deadly confrontation: “Yall had him out numbered and decided to KILL him like it was a video game,” he wrote.
Others expressed anguish for the tensions in Minneapolis and the rest of the country at large—WNBA star Angel Reese wrote she was “praying for our country.”
Some professional football players also spoke out about the shooting, including the Minnesota Vikings’ Dwight McGlothern, who said “It’s not right what’s happening in Minnesota.”
Musicians and actors also began reacting to the shooting in the hours—Ariana Grande reposted a message from New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani calling to “abolish ICE” on her Instagram story, while fellow pop star Olivia Rodrigo called the agency’s actions “unconscionable” and wrote “I stand with Minnesota.”
Crucial Quote
“For weeks now, people across the country have been rightly outraged by the spectacle of masked ICE recruits and other federal agents acting with impunity and engaging in tactics that seem designed to intimidate, harass, provoke and endanger the residents of a major American city,” Obama said. The former president said that federal agents must perform their duties in a “lawful, accountable way,” but “we’re seeing the opposite” from the agents deployed in Minneapolis.
Who Was Alex Pretti?
Pretti was an intensive care unit nurse who worked at a Veterans Administration hospital in Minneapolis, his family said in a statement released on Saturday night. They described him as a “kindhearted soul who cared deeply for his family and friends and also the American veterans.” Pretti was shot and killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis on Saturday. In the immediate aftermath, the Trump administration officials said that Pretti was armed with a handgun and multiple magazines. Customs and Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino said Pretti “wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement,” but video released in the hours following appears to contradict this account. In videos of the incident, Pretti appears to approach the officers holding his phone in one hand, with his other hand raised to protect himself from pepper spray. Pretti was on the ground and apparently disarmed by another agent before shots were fired, although Bovino said he “violently resisted” arrest.
What Has Trump Said About Pretti’s Shooting?
Trump shared a photo of the gun Pretti was allegedly armed with, describing the weapon in a post on Truth Social as “loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go.” The president quickly pivoted to blaming Democratic leadership in Minnesota for the clashes between ICE agents and protesters, claiming that Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz were “inciting Insurrection, with their pompous, dangerous, and arrogant rhetoric.”