President Donald Trump said his administration is reviewing the fatal shooting of a Minneapolis man by a federal Border Patrol agent, while simultaneously defending the broader federal enforcement presence in the city and tying the incident to what he described as massive welfare fraud.
In a telephone interview with The Wall Street Journal on Sunday, January 25, 2026, Trump addressed the shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti, an intensive-care nurse who was killed early Saturday during protest-related activity involving federal agents. Pretti had been recording officers at the scene when the encounter turned deadly.
Asked directly whether the agent’s actions were justified, Trump declined to offer a conclusion. “We’re looking, we’re reviewing everything and will come out with a determination,” he said. Administration officials had earlier issued statements defending the agent’s conduct.
Trump framed his remarks with a general condemnation of violence while emphasizing that Pretti was armed. “I don’t like any shooting. I don’t like it,” the president said. “But I don’t like it when somebody goes into a protest and he’s got a very powerful, fully loaded gun with two magazines loaded up with bullets also. That doesn’t play good either.”
He went further in describing the firearm, calling it “a very dangerous gun, a dangerous and unpredictable gun,” and claiming, “It’s a gun that goes off when people don’t know it.” The Department of Homeland Security has said Pretti was carrying a 9mm semiautomatic handgun.
The president also suggested that the current concentration of federal immigration enforcement personnel in Minneapolis would not be permanent. “At some point we will leave. We’ve done, they’ve done a phenomenal job,” Trump said, without offering a timeline. When pressed on whether agents would withdraw soon, he added, “We’ll leave a different group of people there for the financial fraud.”
Trump linked the enforcement operation to what he characterized as an unprecedented welfare-fraud problem in Minnesota. “It’s the biggest fraud anyone has seen,” he said, adding that California could face an even larger version of the same issue.
The shooting has further inflamed debate over the administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement strategy in major cities, particularly in Minneapolis, where federal agents have continued operations despite resistance from state and local officials. It marked the second fatal encounter involving federal officers in the city this month.
Trump, according to new reports, was not happy with the way some of his leadership team handled the situation. In the immediate aftermath of the incident, the Department of Homeland Security said Pretti had “violently resisted” attempts to disarm him, prompting agents to fire defensive shots. That account has since been challenged by bystander videos reviewed by media outlets, which appear to show an agent removing the handgun from Pretti shortly before multiple shots were fired.
Inside the White House, officials have indicated plans to highlight ICE operations in other parts of the country in the coming weeks in an effort to counter negative coverage. Some advisers view Minneapolis as a developing political liability, while others argue the administration should maintain a hard line on deportations.
In response, the president has sent his Border Czar, Tom Homan, to take command of ICE in Minnesota. Trump said Homan will report “directly to me” and will help lead the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in Minneapolis and St. Paul. The Justice Department and Congress are also investigating Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota accused of fraud, Trump announced.
“I am sending Tom Homan to Minnesota tonight. He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there. Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“Separately, a major investigation is going on with respect to the massive 20 Billion Dollar, Plus, Welfare Fraud that has taken place in Minnesota, and is at least partially responsible for the violent organized protests going on in the streets,” he continued.
