The death of Alex Pretti, the Minneapolis man killed by federal agents, has been ruled a homicide, the Hennepin County medical examiner’s office said.
Pretti was shot Jan. 24 during a chaotic encounter with federal immigration officers in Minneapolis.
Citing government records, ProPublica identified Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and Customs and Border Protection officer Raymundo Gutierrez as the two officers who fired at Pretti.
The news outlet reports that Ochoa has been a Border Patrol agent since 2018, while Guituerrez had been with CBP since 2014.
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The Department of Homeland Security said officers were attempting to take Pretti into custody after he interfered with an immigration enforcement operation.
A witness, however, said the situation escalated when an agent shoved a person to the ground and repeatedly sprayed them with pepper spray.
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Video posted online shows multiple agents then forcing Pretti to the ground before disarming and shooting him.
Both agents were placed on standard administrative leave following the shooting. No charges have been filed. The Justice Department’s civil rights division has opened a federal investigation into the shooting.
State officials have criticized DHS for limiting state access to the case, prompting a lawsuit seeking to preserve evidence.
