The Fatal Encounter That Sparked National Scrutiny
The killing of Alex Pretti has remained a focal point of national debate over federal immigration enforcement and the use of force. Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse at the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center, was shot and killed by federal agents during an immigration enforcement operation on January 24. Bystander video from that encounter shows officers confronting Pretti at close range before shots were fired and, later, an agent removing a handgun from Pretti’s waistband after he was down on the ground.
Federal officials have said agents believed Pretti posed an imminent threat; family members and civil rights advocates dispute aspects of that account, and the incident continues to be investigated.
The Newly Surfaced Video From January 13
Eleven days before his death, new bystander footage shows Pretti in a separate confrontation with federal agents during protests against immigration enforcement in Minneapolis. The video, verified by multiple outlets and published by People magazine, shows Pretti approaching a federal vehicle, shouting at officers and telling them to use force on him, and kicking its rear taillight hard enough to break it.
Agents rush toward him, take him to the ground, and briefly restrain him before releasing him without arrest. Allegedly, Pretti suffered broken ribs from an altercation with federal agents.
The Weapon: a Sig Sauer P320, and Why “Uncommanded Discharge” Keeps Coming Up
A key factual detail in this case is the specific firearm Pretti carried: multiple reports have identified it as a Sig Sauer P320. The P320 matters because it has generated years of litigation and agency concern over allegations that some variants can fire without a traditional, intentional trigger pull under certain conditions, including mishandling, holstering dynamics, or component failures.
That does not prove anything about what happened in Minneapolis, and investigators have not publicly concluded that Pretti’s pistol fired at all during the January 24 encounter. Still, the P320’s background explains why this question persists in public discussion.
The most established, non-case-specific starting point is Sig Sauer’s own “voluntary upgrade” program for early P320s, launched after independent testing raised concerns about drop-related discharges. Sig’s public materials describe changes such as a reduced-mass trigger and related internal modifications, and they frame the update as an enhancement rather than a recall.
Independent reporting contemporaneous with the program explains the upgrade, followed by evidence that the pistol could fire when dropped in a specific orientation beyond standard test conditions.
Since then, allegations have expanded beyond drop incidents into a broader set of claims sometimes described as “uncommanded discharges,” particularly in law-enforcement contexts. Investigations and lawsuits have cataloged incidents in which officers or civilians say a P320 fired while holstered or during routine handling, with Sig Sauer disputing the claims and emphasizing the pistol meets safety standards. Public institutions have also compiled technical reviews without tying them to any one incident.
In the Pretti case specifically, what can be said without overreach is narrow: video shows an agent removing a handgun from Pretti’s waistband after he was down, and investigators have not publicly reported that Pretti’s gun fired. Until investigators release ballistic findings and a full reconstruction – especially regarding whether the pistol was manipulated, whether any round discharged, and whether any discharge preceded the agent’s shots – claims that the P320 “went off” in this encounter remain speculation rather than established fact.
Employment and Rumors of Termination
In the wake of these developments, a separate rumor circulated online claiming that Pretti had been fired from his position at the VA for inappropriate behavior. There is no credible evidence supporting this claim. News outlets describe Pretti as an ICU nurse employed at the Minneapolis VA hospital at the time of his death, and no reputable reporting has documented any disciplinary action or termination.
The VA has not issued any public statement confirming employment issues, and coverage by multiple outlets frames his role as a medical professional rather than a terminated employee.
Why the Earlier Video Matters but Doesn’t Settle the Case
Supporters of enforcement authorities have pointed to the January 13 video as evidence of confrontational behavior by Pretti in the days before his death. Critics emphasize that even if that incident reflected misconduct, it does not legally justify the use of lethal force in a later, separate encounter. Legal analysts quoted in national reporting stress that each use-of-force incident must be evaluated on the specific circumstances facing officers at that moment.
The January 13 altercation ended without arrest, charges, or escalation to deadly force, while the January 24 incident escalated within seconds.
An Incomplete Record, Still Under Review
The newly surfaced video and the addition of firearm context deepen public understanding of Pretti’s interactions with federal agents, but do not resolve the core questions surrounding his death. Investigations by DHS, the FBI, and other oversight bodies are ongoing, and state and local officials have called for transparency and independent review.
What the current record shows is a series of events that remain under formal scrutiny, with unresolved questions about perception, threat assessment, weapon handling, and agency policy.
