US Health Workers Pay Tribute To Slain ICU Nurse Alex Pretti

Health professionals and colleagues on Tuesday paid tribute to Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care unit (ICU) nurse, who was shot dead on January 24th by a federal agent during an immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis, a killing that has sparked widespread outrage across the United States.

In a video circulating on social media, staff at the Veterans Affairs Hospital where Alex worked gathered and raised their hands in salute — a ceremony commonly referred to as “The Last Post” — to pay their final respects to him as his body was wheeled out of the facility.

Family members said Pretti, a US citizen born in Illinois, was deeply troubled by President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown in his city.

In a poignant display of grief and profound respect, the colleagues Alex worked alongside everyday formed a guard of honour to salute him for his years of dedicated service to America’s veterans.

They described him as compassionate and socially conscious, noting that he had participated in protests following the January 7 killing of Renee Good, another U.S. citizen who was fatally shot by an immigration officer during a separate enforcement operation.

His family said Pretti had no criminal record and had never had any interactions with law enforcement beyond minor traffic violations. They added that they had recently cautioned him to be careful while protesting.

Speaking with the Associated Press, his father, Michael Pretti, said his son cared deeply about people and the ongoing immigration actions.

“He cared about people and he was very deeply [concerned] with what was happening in Minneapolis and throughout the United States with ICE. We had this discussion with him about two weeks or so. We said, go ahead and protest, but do not engage, do not do anything stupid, basically,” he said.

Pretti was described as an avid outdoorsman who enjoyed adventures with his Catahoula leopard dog, Joule, who died around a year ago, AP reported.

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Pretti was shot after he allegedly approached Border Patrol officers with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun. Officials, however, did not specify whether the weapon was brandished. Videos show no evidence to support the claim he used any armed force to threaten agents.

Addressing the incident at a press conference, US Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, said officers acted in self-defence.

“This individual showed up to impede a law enforcement operation and assaulted our officers. They responded according to their training and took action to defend the officer’s life and those of the public around him,” she said.

However, bystander videos of the shooting show Pretti holding a mobile phone, with no visible weapon seen in the footage.

The killing marked the second time this month that federal agents fatally shot a U.S. citizen in Minneapolis during immigration operations. The first was Renee Good, a 37-year-old Minneapolis woman, who was shot on January 7 after being accused of attempting to run over an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent with her vehicle.

Reacting to the incidents, President Donald Trump described the deaths as “tragic” but blamed Democratic leaders for what he called unsafe conditions.

In a series of social media posts, Trump wrote:

“Democrat-run Sanctuary Cities and States are REFUSING to cooperate with ICE, and they are actually encouraging Leftwing Agitators to unlawfully obstruct their operations to arrest the Worst of the Worst People!”

He added: “By doing this, Democrats are putting Illegal Alien Criminals over Taxpaying, Law-Abiding Citizens, and they have created dangerous circumstances for EVERYONE involved.”

The President said immigration enforcement operations were proceeding “peacefully and smoothly” in Republican-governed states, where local authorities were cooperating with ICE, and suggested the deaths of Good and Pretti could have been avoided under similar circumstances.

On Sunday, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz described Alex Pretti as, “Someone who went to work to care for veterans, someone who was a valued co-worker, someone who relished and lived in this state in a big way, whether it was outdoor activities or being down there on the street as a First Amendment witness to what ICE is doing to this state.”

After seeing videos suggesting their son was a “domestic terrorist,” Pretti’s family issued a statement saying “the sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting”.

They claimed videos showed Pretti was not holding a gun when he was tackled by federal agents. “Please get the truth out about our son. He was a good man,” they urged in their statement.