CBP Names Agents in Minneapolis Shooting of Nurse Alex Pretti Amid Probe

Federal records released over the weekend identified the two U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents who fatally shot Minneapolis protester Alex Jeffrey Pretti as Border Patrol Agent Jesus “Jesse” Ochoa, 43, and CBP Officer Raymundo Gutierrez, 35, intensifying scrutiny of a deadly immigration enforcement operation that has already sparked nationwide protests and a federal civil-rights investigation nytimes +1. Pretti, a 37‑year‑old intensive‑care nurse, was killed on Jan. 24 during a confrontation with agents deployed to Minneapolis under “Operation Metro Surge” theguardian.

The Department of Justice confirmed on Jan. 30 that the FBI had taken over the case and that the department’s Civil Rights Division had opened a probe into whether Pretti’s rights were violated, even as senior officials stressed it remained a “standard investigation” at this stage fox9 +1. CBP placed both Ochoa and Gutierrez on administrative leave, while local and state authorities in Minnesota pursued rare legal steps to preserve evidence and gain access to the scene amid early friction with federal agencies theguardian.

Conflicting Accounts and Video Evidence

A preliminary internal review by CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility reported that two officers fired CBP‑issued pistols after a Border Patrol agent shouted “He’s got a gun!” multiple times during a struggle near Nicollet Avenue and West 26th Street around 9 a.m. on Jan. 24 theguardian +1. The report described agents attempting to disarm Pretti, who was armed with a handgun, and said a Border Patrol official fired “defensive shots” fearing for his life and those of other officers washingtonpost.

Bystander videos and eyewitness accounts have complicated that narrative. Footage shows Pretti filming agents, intervening after a woman is pushed, being pepper‑sprayed, and taken to the ground; one clip appears to show an agent removing a handgun from his waistband seconds before a burst of shots is heard nbcnews. The DHS review sent to Congress notably did not state that Pretti ever brandished the weapon, a gap that legal experts say raises questions about the immediacy of the threat and whether less‑lethal options or a different approach to crowd control could have prevented the shooting nytimes +1.

Growing Backlash Over Federal Tactics and Secrecy

The incident unfolded against the backdrop of Operation Metro Surge, a December 2025 deployment of armed, sometimes masked CBP personnel to Minneapolis as part of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown nytimes +1. Pretti’s killing, coming weeks after a separate fatal shooting of Renee Good by an immigration officer in the same city, fueled accusations that federal agents were operating with inadequate oversight and aggressive rules of engagement rawstory. Protests spread from Minneapolis to cities across the country, with some organizers calling a nationwide “no work, no school, no shopping” strike to protest the crackdown cbsnews.

Criticism has also focused on CBP’s handling of information: the agency initially withheld the names of the shooters and limited access to body‑camera and other evidence, prompting Minnesota officials to seek court orders and lawmakers from both parties to demand transparency theguardian +1. “More and more police departments are choosing to release bodycam footage… within a couple of days,” said Lauren Bonds of the National Police Accountability Project, arguing that the federal approach has eroded public trust cnn. Even some Republicans who defended federal officers’ right to protect themselves have joined calls for an independent, public accounting of what happened pbs.

The Bigger Picture

The identification of Ochoa and Gutierrez has intensified pressure on federal investigators to reconcile starkly different accounts of the final seconds of Pretti’s life and to clarify who sets, and polices, the rules when heavily armed immigration agents operate in American cities. The outcome of the civil‑rights probe could shape not only potential charges against the officers but also future limits on deploying CBP for domestic crowd control, an issue now at the center of a broader debate over federal power, protest rights, and accountability in law enforcement fox9 +1.