Family of Alex Pretti says it is heartbroken and ‘very angry’

A photo of Alex Pretti at a makeshift memorial at the site in Minneapolis where he was shot and killed by federal immigration agents, on Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026. Pretti’s parents, Susan and Michael Pretti, in a statement reported by CNN that The New York Times could not independently verify, called their son “a kindhearted soul who cared deeply for his family and friends and also the American veterans whom he cared for as an ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital.” (Victor J. Blue/The New York Times)

By TALYA MINSBERG

The family of a man killed by federal agents in Minnesota on Saturday said they were heartbroken, but also “very angry.”

The man, Alex Jeffrey Pretti, was shot several times during a confrontation with immigration officers on a Minneapolis street near his home.

Pretti’s parents, Susan and Michael Pretti, in a statement reported by CNN that The New York Times could not independently verify, called their son “a kindhearted soul who cared deeply for his family and friends and also the American veterans whom he cared for as an ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital.”

“Alex wanted to make a difference in this world,” the statement said. “Unfortunately he will not be with us to see his impact.”

Pretti’s family joined a chorus of criticism of the federal government over its response to the shooting. Federal officials, including the Homeland Security secretary, Kristi Noem, said Pretti confronted agents with the intent “to perpetuate violence.” Noem also accused him of “domestic terrorism.”

Videos show that Pretti was holding a phone, rather than his gun, and that an agent took the weapon from his body just before he was shot.

“The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting,” the Pretti family statement said. “Please get the truth out about our son. He was a good man.”