Were Border Patrol Agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP Officer Raymundo Gutierrez justified in fatally shooting Alex Pretti?
Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP officer Raymundo Gutierrez fatally shot ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. DHS said he was armed and violently resisted; bystander video shows agents had already disarmed him before firing.
BackgroundWhen can federal immigration agents use deadly force?
Case period:
Published by The Dispute Index editorial teamPublished Updated
Overview
This case classifies responses to whether Agent Jesus Ochoa and Officer Raymundo Gutierrez were justified in fatally shooting Alex Pretti on January 24, 2026. The central dispute is whether Pretti posed an active armed threat when the agents fired, given DHS's account that he approached armed and violently resisted disarming, set against bystander video that multiple news organizations say shows an agent removing Pretti's handgun from his waistband roughly a second before the first shots. The medical examiner's homicide ruling establishes the cause and manner of death but does not itself resolve whether the shooting was lawful or justified use of force. Pretti's own prior conduct during the surrounding protests, his family's retention of legal counsel, and the Department of Justice's ongoing civil rights investigation do not independently resolve the justification question; they document reactions to and the pending resolution of the same disputed shooting.
Background: When can federal immigration agents use deadly force?
Timeline
8 timeline entries on this page. Dates: January 24, 2026 to September 9, 2026
January 2026
Ochoa and Gutierrez fatally shoot Alex Pretti in Minneapolis
Incident
During Operation Metro Surge, Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP officer Raymundo Gutierrez fired approximately ten shots that killed Alex Pretti on Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis after agents pepper-sprayed and pinned him to the ground and removed a handgun from his waistband.
[01]CBS News
Source excerpt
An individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a nine millimeter semi-automatic handgun ... The officers attempted to disarm this individual [who] violently resisted.
CBS News reporting quoting DHS's official account of the shooting (via Secretary Kristi Noem) that Pretti approached agents armed and violently resisted disarming, set against bystander video that CBS reviewed showing Pretti holding a cellphone and an agent removing a firearm from his waistband roughly a second before the first shot.
[02]NBC News
Source excerpt
Every video will be analyzed, everything will be looked at ... But this happened in seconds.
NBC News live-blog coverage verifying and analyzing multiple bystander videos of the encounter, showing Pretti holding a phone (not a firearm) with his empty left hand raised, being pepper-sprayed while trying to assist a woman agents had pushed down, before agents pinned and disarmed him.
Live updates: Federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti in Minneapolis — NBC News · NBC Newslive blog, video-analysis entriesDHS gives official account; Frey and video analyses dispute it
Reaction
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said Pretti approached officers armed with a 9mm handgun and violently resisted disarming, prompting defensive shots. The same day, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey publicly asked how many more residents needed to die before the operation ended, and news organizations began publishing bystander-video analyses.
[01]CBS News
Source excerpt
An individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a nine millimeter semi-automatic handgun ... The officers attempted to disarm this individual [who] violently resisted.
CBS News reporting quoting DHS's official account of the shooting (via Secretary Kristi Noem) that Pretti approached agents armed and violently resisted disarming, set against bystander video that CBS reviewed showing Pretti holding a cellphone and an agent removing a firearm from his waistband roughly a second before the first shot.
[03]A second U.S. citizen was killed by federal forces in Minneapolis. Here's what we know — PBS News
Source excerpt
How many more residents, how many more Americans need to die or get badly hurt for this operation to end?
Reports Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey's statement at a news conference hours after Pretti's shooting, questioning how many more people needed to be killed or hurt before Operation Metro Surge ended.
A second U.S. citizen was killed by federal forces in Minneapolis. Here's what we know — PBS Newsarticle body, Frey news conference quoteDOJ opens federal civil rights investigation
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced that the FBI, with the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, would open a federal civil rights investigation into whether the agents who shot Pretti violated Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable seizure and excessive force.
[04]DOJ opens civil rights probe into killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents — JURIST
Source excerpt
I don't think a single video should change any perception the Department of Justice may or may not have about that tragic occurrence last Saturday.
Reports Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche's January 30 announcement that the FBI, with the DOJ Civil Rights Division, would lead a federal civil rights investigation into whether the agents who shot Pretti violated Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable seizure and excessive force.
February 2026
ProPublica identifies Ochoa and Gutierrez as the agents who fired
Source release
ProPublica published government records identifying Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa, 43, and CBP officer Raymundo Gutierrez, 35, as the two agents who fired on Pretti, reporting their hire dates and assignment to Operation Metro Surge.
[05]ProPublica
Source excerpt
They should not be anonymous. They should be identifiable.
ProPublica's identification of Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP officer Raymundo Gutierrez as the two agents who fired on Alex Pretti, based on government records reviewed by the outlet. Reports their ages, hire dates, roles, and assignment to Operation Metro Surge. Quote is Rep. Jamie Raskin's comment on why the agents' identities should not remain anonymous.
CBP Agents Jesus Ochoa, Raymundo Gutierrez Identified in Alex Pretti Shooting — ProPublica · ProPublicaarticle body, paragraphs identifying the agents and their assignmentsMedical examiner rules Pretti's death a homicide
The Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office ruled that Pretti died of multiple gunshot wounds inflicted by law enforcement officers and classified the manner of death as homicide, a classification that does not by itself determine whether a crime occurred.
[06]Medical examiner rules Alex Pretti's death a homicide — KTTC
Source excerpt
the term homicide is defined as a death that happens at the hands of another person; however, not all homicides are a crime.
Reports the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office ruling, released February 2, 2026, that Pretti died of multiple gunshot wounds inflicted by law enforcement officer(s) and classifying the manner of death as homicide, a medical/legal classification that does not itself determine whether a crime occurred.
Trump says the Pretti and Good killings "should've not happened"
Reaction
In an Oval Office interview with NBC News' Tom Llamas, President Trump said of Pretti and Renee Good that "he was not an angel and she was not an angel," but when Llamas asked whether that justified what happened to them, Trump answered "No. I don't" and said "it should've not happened."
[07]NBC News
Source excerpt
he was not an angel and she was not an angel. You know, you look at some tapes from back -- but still, I'm not happy with what happened there. ... No. I don't. I -- it should've not happened. It was a very sad -- to me it was a very sad incident, two incidents.
Full NBC News transcript of Tom Llamas's Oval Office interview with President Trump, in which Llamas asks whether Good's and Pretti's conduct justified what happened to them and Trump answers on the record.
Read the full transcript: President Donald Trump interviewed by 'NBC Nightly News' anchor Tom Llamas · NBC Newstranscript, Renee Good/Alex Pretti exchangeHoman announces end of Operation Metro Surge
Border czar Tom Homan announced that Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis would conclude, with agents beginning to leave the city, linking the drawdown to the deaths of Pretti and Renee Good and the resulting protests.
[08]NBC News
Source excerpt
I don't want to see any more bloodshed. I pray every night for the safety of law enforcement personnel and the safety of those in the community.
Reports border czar Tom Homan's February 12 announcement that Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis would conclude, directly linking the drawdown to the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti and the resulting protests.
Homan says Operation Metro Surge is ending in Minneapolis — NBC News · NBC Newsarticle body
September 2026
Federal investigators interview key eyewitness
FBI investigators, with DHS and the U.S. Attorney's Office present, interviewed eyewitness Wynnie Savageford at the Minneapolis federal courthouse, confirming the federal civil rights investigation remained active as of September 2026 with no public charging decision against either agent.
[09]MPR News
Source excerpt
We feel great after today. Wynnie was so brave. She gave such good testimony, very detailed, very concise.
MPR News reporting that FBI investigators, with DHS and the U.S. Attorney's Office present, interviewed eyewitness Wynnie Savageford at the Minneapolis federal courthouse on September 9, 2026, confirming the federal civil rights investigation into the shooting remained active as of that date with no charging decision yet reported.
Federal investigators interview key witness to Alex Pretti shooting — MPR News · MPR Newsarticle body
Response record
Responses
Choose one response filter, or select All responses to see the full record.
1 matching response. Newest first.
U.S. Department of Homeland SecurityU.S. Department of Homeland Security, official departmental statementDirectly involvedBefore this statement
DHS posted its account of the shooting on X shortly after the incident, while describing the broader enforcement operation then underway in Minneapolis.
"At 9:05 AM CT, as DHS law enforcement officers were conducting a targeted operation in Minneapolis against an illegal alien wanted for violent assault, an individual approached US Border Patrol officers with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun, seen here. The officers attempted to disarm the suspect but the armed suspect violently resisted."
Defended or excusedCase context: Were Border Patrol Agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP Officer Raymundo Gutierrez justified in fatally shooting Alex Pretti?
Full statement and sources
DHS posted an official account of the shooting on X hours after it occurred, saying Pretti approached agents armed with a handgun and violently resisted their attempt to disarm him.
After the statement
The department's statement predated the release and independent analysis of multiple bystander videos of the encounter that news organizations said showed a different sequence of events.
Video Analyses at Odds with DHS Statements on Minneapolis Shooting — FactCheck.orgarticle body, quoting DHS's January 24, 2026, 11:31 a.m. CT X postWhy this label?
DHS's statement defends the agents' decision to fire by asserting Pretti was armed, approached officers, and violently resisted disarming -- directly excusing the use of deadly force under scrutiny in this case.
This label describes the statement's response within the context above.
Sources
(18)
Reporting
In Alex Pretti's killing, a sharp contrast between what Trump officials say and what video shows — CBS News
Relevant passage: article body
Excerpt
"An individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a nine millimeter semi-automatic handgun ... The officers attempted to disarm this individual [who] violently resisted."
About this source
CBS News reporting quoting DHS's official account of the shooting (via Secretary Kristi Noem) that Pretti approached agents armed and violently resisted disarming, set against bystander video that CBS reviewed showing Pretti holding a cellphone and an agent removing a firearm from his waistband roughly a second before the first shot.
- Author
- Nancy Cordes
- Published
- Accessed
Original post
Steven Young on X: Klobuchar and the killings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good
About this source
Post by Steven Young, then the Green Party's candidate for Minnesota governor, quoting a post by Sen. Amy Klobuchar about the October 7 attack on Israel.
- Author
- Steven Young (@steveformn)
- Published
- Accessed
Original post
Maya Contreras responds to Nick Sortor about Alex Pretti
About this source
Contreras rejects Sortor's account and blames federal immigration enforcement for Pretti's killing. The reply also discusses Renee Good.
- Author
- Maya Contreras
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
NRA Minnesota statements: Calls out ‘dangerous and wrong’ sentiment
Relevant passage: Section 'NRA statements on Minnesota shooting', the NRA's reply to Essayli in the 'Dig deeper' paragraph
Excerpt
"This sentiment from the First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California is dangerous and wrong. Responsible public voices should be awaiting a full investigation, not making generalizations and demonizing law-abiding citizens."
About this source
LiveNOW from FOX report, published January 25, 2026, quoting the NRA's public statements on X about the shooting of Alex Pretti and a U.S. attorney's comment on it.
- Author
- Megan Ziegler
- Published
- Accessed
Interview
Border Patrol union: Agent involved in shooting made 'split-second decision'
Paul Perez, president of the National Border Patrol Council, discusses the Border Patrol agent's decision to shoot in Minneapolis, on ABC News Live, Jan. 27, 2026.
Excerpt from 6:20 to 7:04 of the ABC News video. Taken from ABC News's own video page. The ABC News YouTube upload cited for this source shows the same video. DI added its logo in the corner.
Video: ABC News. Excerpt used for news reporting and commentary
Watch the full original video (opens in a new tab) (relevant passage: About 6:41 to 6:58 in the 9-minute video, in the answer to the anchor's question about whether the shooting was justified)
Excerpt
"And we believe he will be justified at the end of the day, based on the totality of the circumstances."
About this source
ABC News video of an interview with Paul Perez, president of the National Border Patrol Council, about the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.
- Published
- Accessed
Interview
Gregory Bovino discusses the Alex Pretti shooting on CNN
Relevant passage: Embedded CNN interview; exchange after Dana Bash says the account sounds like victim-blaming
Excerpt
"The victims are the Border Patrol agents. The suspect put himself in that situation."
About this source
The video and transcript excerpt capture Bovino's direct response when challenged over whether he was blaming Alex Pretti.
- Author
- CNN interview excerpt republished by RealClearPolitics
- Published
- Accessed
Official statement
Klobuchar questions Secretary Noem on ICE actions in Minnesota
Relevant passage: Rough transcript, opening exchange with Secretary Kristi Noem, after Noem confirms she oversaw Operation Metro Surge
Excerpt
"They should be alive today."
About this source
The official page includes video and a rough transcript of Klobuchar's Senate Judiciary Committee questioning about Renee Good, Alex Pretti, and federal conduct in Minnesota.
- Author
- Office of Senator Amy Klobuchar
- Published
- Accessed
Analysis
What the video shows — and doesn't — about the killing of Alex Pretti — Poynter
Relevant passage: article body, quoting Noem's Jan. 24, 2026 press conference
Excerpt
"impeded their law enforcement operations, attacked those officers"
About this source
Poynter fact-check quoting DHS Secretary Kristi Noem's January 24, 2026 press conference statement that Pretti used his weapon to assault law enforcement officers, set against the outlet's review of bystander video.
- Author
- Maria Ramirez Uribe
- Published
- Accessed
Analysis
Video Analyses at Odds with DHS Statements on Minneapolis Shooting — FactCheck.org
Relevant passage: article body, quoting DHS's January 24, 2026, 11:31 a.m. CT X post
Excerpt
"At 9:05 AM CT, as DHS law enforcement officers were conducting a targeted operation in Minneapolis against an illegal alien wanted for violent assault, an individual approached US Border Patrol officers with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun, seen here. The officers attempted to disarm the suspect but the armed suspect violently resisted."
About this source
FactCheck.org quotes DHS's official January 24, 2026 X post giving the department's account of the shooting, and compares it against independent video analyses that it says are at odds with that account.
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
A second U.S. citizen was killed by federal forces in Minneapolis. Here's what we know — PBS News
Relevant passage: article body, Frey news conference quote
Excerpt
"How many more residents, how many more Americans need to die or get badly hurt for this operation to end?"
About this source
Reports Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey's statement at a news conference hours after Pretti's shooting, questioning how many more people needed to be killed or hurt before Operation Metro Surge ended.
- Author
- Joshua Barajas
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
Homan says Operation Metro Surge is ending in Minneapolis — NBC News
Relevant passage: article body
Excerpt
"I don't want to see any more bloodshed. I pray every night for the safety of law enforcement personnel and the safety of those in the community."
About this source
Reports border czar Tom Homan's February 12 announcement that Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis would conclude, directly linking the drawdown to the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti and the resulting protests.
- Author
- Matt Lavietes
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
DOJ opens civil rights probe into killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents — JURIST
Relevant passage: article body
Excerpt
"I don't think a single video should change any perception the Department of Justice may or may not have about that tragic occurrence last Saturday."
About this source
Reports Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche's January 30 announcement that the FBI, with the DOJ Civil Rights Division, would lead a federal civil rights investigation into whether the agents who shot Pretti violated Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable seizure and excessive force.
- Author
- Joshua Villanueva
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
Federal investigators interview key witness to Alex Pretti shooting — MPR News
Relevant passage: article body
Excerpt
"We feel great after today. Wynnie was so brave. She gave such good testimony, very detailed, very concise."
About this source
MPR News reporting that FBI investigators, with DHS and the U.S. Attorney's Office present, interviewed eyewitness Wynnie Savageford at the Minneapolis federal courthouse on September 9, 2026, confirming the federal civil rights investigation into the shooting remained active as of that date with no charging decision yet reported.
- Author
- Nicole Ki
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
Live updates: Walz visits Pretti memorial, calls for accountability — ABC7
Relevant passage: live-update entry, Jan. 28, 5:27 PM GMT
Excerpt
"I'm not so interested in shift in tone. We just need them out of here, and we need accountability for what's happened."
About this source
ABC News live-blog entry reporting Minnesota Governor Tim Walz's visit to a memorial for Alex Pretti and his on-camera comments to ABC News correspondent Matt Rivers about Operation Metro Surge and accountability for the shooting.
- Published
- Accessed
Interview
Read the full transcript: President Donald Trump interviewed by 'NBC Nightly News' anchor Tom Llamas
Relevant passage: transcript, Renee Good/Alex Pretti exchange
Excerpt
"he was not an angel and she was not an angel. You know, you look at some tapes from back -- but still, I'm not happy with what happened there. ... No. I don't. I -- it should've not happened. It was a very sad -- to me it was a very sad incident, two incidents."
About this source
Full NBC News transcript of Tom Llamas's Oval Office interview with President Trump, in which Llamas asks whether Good's and Pretti's conduct justified what happened to them and Trump answers on the record.
- Author
- Tom Llamas
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
Medical examiner rules Alex Pretti's death a homicide — KTTC
Relevant passage: article body
Excerpt
"the term homicide is defined as a death that happens at the hands of another person; however, not all homicides are a crime."
About this source
Reports the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office ruling, released February 2, 2026, that Pretti died of multiple gunshot wounds inflicted by law enforcement officer(s) and classifying the manner of death as homicide, a medical/legal classification that does not itself determine whether a crime occurred.
- Author
- Brock Bergey
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
Live updates: Federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti in Minneapolis — NBC News
Relevant passage: live blog, video-analysis entries
Excerpt
"Every video will be analyzed, everything will be looked at ... But this happened in seconds."
About this source
NBC News live-blog coverage verifying and analyzing multiple bystander videos of the encounter, showing Pretti holding a phone (not a firearm) with his empty left hand raised, being pepper-sprayed while trying to assist a woman agents had pushed down, before agents pinned and disarmed him.
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
CBP Agents Jesus Ochoa, Raymundo Gutierrez Identified in Alex Pretti Shooting — ProPublica
Relevant passage: article body, paragraphs identifying the agents and their assignments
Excerpt
"They should not be anonymous. They should be identifiable."
About this source
ProPublica's identification of Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP officer Raymundo Gutierrez as the two agents who fired on Alex Pretti, based on government records reviewed by the outlet. Reports their ages, hire dates, roles, and assignment to Operation Metro Surge. Quote is Rep. Jamie Raskin's comment on why the agents' identities should not remain anonymous.
- Author
- J. David McSwane
- Published
- Accessed
Corrections
(2)
Corrections address errors in our reporting or labels. When a speaker changes their position, we add a separate statement and link it to the earlier one.
Reporting correction
Correction to: Statement by Jacob Frey
- Previous language
- Frey separately posted on social media that Minneapolis police would not enforce federal immigration law and that the department's focus was keeping residents safe.
- Corrected language
- Frey also asked: "How many more lives need to be lost before this administration realizes that a political and partisan narrative is not as important as American values?"
The context for this statement said Frey separately posted on social media that Minneapolis police would not enforce federal immigration law. The PBS News article we cited does not report that. We removed the sentence and replaced it with a second question from Frey that PBS News prints directly after the quoted one.
This corrects our account of what happened.
Reports Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey's statement at a news conference hours after Pretti's shooting, questioning how many more people needed to be killed or hurt before Operation Metro Surge ended.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting correction
Correction to: Statement by Donald Trump
- Previous language
- President Trump said the shooting, along with the earlier fatal shooting of Renee Good, 'should not have happened' while maintaining Pretti and Good 'were not angels.'
- Corrected language
- Discussing the shooting and the earlier fatal shooting of Renee Good in an NBC News interview, President Trump said "he was not an angel and she was not an angel," but when asked whether that justified what happened to them, he answered "No. I don't" and said "it should've not happened."
An earlier version of this case summary, its timeline entry and President Trump's statement entry put paraphrases of his NBC News remarks in quotation marks, including "were not angels" and "should not have happened." We replaced them with his words as NBC News' transcript records them: "he was not an angel and she was not an angel" and "it should've not happened." The change does not alter the substance of what we reported.
This corrects our account of what happened.
Full NBC News transcript of Tom Llamas's Oval Office interview with President Trump, in which Llamas asks whether Good's and Pretti's conduct justified what happened to them and Trump answers on the record.
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- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Were Border Patrol Agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP Officer Raymundo Gutierrez justified in fatally shooting Alex Pretti?
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/cases/border-patrol-jesus-ochoa-cbp-raymundo-gutierrez-shooting-alex-pretti-justified
The Dispute Index. "Were Border Patrol Agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP Officer Raymundo Gutierrez justified in fatally shooting Alex Pretti?". First published: 2026-09-24. Last updated: 2026-10-06. https://disputeindex.com/cases/border-patrol-jesus-ochoa-cbp-raymundo-gutierrez-shooting-alex-pretti-justified