FBI Told Minnesota It Will Share Zero Evidence on Alex Pretti Shooting, Even as ICE Admits its Lies
The FBI still won't share any info, even as the DOJ says it's investigating Minneapolis ICE agents for lying in another shooting.
Photo via Unsplash, David Trinks Splinter Minneapolis
Minnesota authorities confirmed officially on Monday what anyone paying attention to the ongoing fallout of the Alex Pretti shooting would already have assumed: Federal law enforcement agencies will provide absolutely no help, and no access to crime scene evidence, to the state’s own law enforcement investigators. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) said in a statement Monday that it had been formally notified by the FBI that they would not be sharing any information or evidence on Pretti’s death. Nevertheless, this will not stop BCA from carrying out its own investigation, albeit without any federal assistance or cooperation.
“The FBI formally notified the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) on Feb. 13 that it will not provide the BCA with access to any information or evidence that it has collected in the Jan. 24 shooting death of Alex Pretti,” said BCA Superintendent Drew Evans. “While this lack of cooperation is concerning and unprecedented, the BCA is committed to thorough, independent and transparent investigations of these incidents, even if hampered by a lack of access to key information and evidence. Our agency has committed to the FBI and Department of Justice that should its stance change we remain willing to share information that we have obtained with that agency and would welcome a joint investigation. We will continue to pursue all legal avenues to gain access to relevant information and evidence.”
It is important to note that behind the scenes, the attitude of the federal government toward state agencies attempting to investigate this incident is still “fuck off and don’t ask questions,” because publicly, DHS and the Department of Justice have been attempting to sing a very different tune ever since public reaction and media coverage of the shooting very clearly spooked President Donald Trump, who has since experienced new second term lows in his aggregated approval rating. There has been a concerted effort in attempting to make the Minnesota ICE/Border Patrol immigration enforcement operation in particular look more gentle and less combative since Trump tapped “border czar” and bribe enthusiast Tom Homan for the job, which culminated in Homan ending the Minnesota surge last week in a seeming attempt to keep Congressional Democrats from shutting down DHS. That push failed, as DHS shut down in a partial government shutdown over the weekend, even if ICE itself will still remain largely funded. But the point is, that in the eyes of the public, ICE has been tiptoeing around, even as Trump’s administration still fights tooth and nail to stop state officials from being able to effectively investigate the death or bring charges of their own. Oh, and the director of ICE also called his own agents liars over the weekend as well.
Swalwell: ICE agents shot Alex Pretti and Renee Good. And the only person in the world who has been held accountable by DHS is the pilot who somehow forgot to move Kristi Noem’s blankie.
— Acyn (@acyn.bsky.social) Feb 13, 2026 at 9:27 PM
This has more or less become standard operating procedure now, given that the FBI also refused to coordinate or share evidence with the Minnesota BCA on the previous shooting death of Renee Nicole Good. Pretti’s slaying by Border Patrol agents, meanwhile, generated even more outrage and fervor, forcing the DOJ to spin on its heels from saying that it would not investigate the killing, to saying it had opened one in its Civil Rights Division into the death. This may have been necessary to staunch the flow of prosecutor resignations throughout the federal government in protest of the killings–at least 14 federal prosecutors in Minnesota alone have resigned, and another exasperated lawyer was removed from her post after telling a judge that “this job sucks” in court. It’s quite an impressive shitshow they have going.
It is deeply ironic and sad that the likes of the FBI would imply that the state of Minnesota’s own law enforcement investigators could not be trusted with information or evidence related to the Alex Pretti shooting case, when the actions and lies of federal agents of DHS are now being investigated by the very same DOJ. In the case of Venezuelan national Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, who was shot in the leg by an agent of ICE on Jan. 14, 2026 (sandwiched between the Good and Pretti shootings), DHS has just backtracked on its previous assertions on the justified use of force, now saying that new video evidence shows that “sworn testimony provided by two separate officers appears to have made untruthful statements.” Those two agents are now the subject of a joint probe with the Justice Department, while a federal judge ordered all charges dropped against Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, dismissing the case with prejudice.
“Lying under oath is a serious federal offense,” said ICE director Todd Lyons in a statement, saying that the agents could face termination of employment or criminal prosecution at the end of the investigation. “The men and women of ICE are entrusted with upholding the rule of law and are held to the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, and ethical conduct. Violations of this sacred sworn oath will not be tolerated. ICE remains fully committed to transparency, accountability, and the fair enforcement of our nation’s immigration laws.”
It should not need to be said, but it still does: An investigation like the above is clearly meant to placate members of the public who understandably believe that federal agents of DHS are acting with impunity to detain and shoot whoever they like, backed up by a Trump administration that to this point has always leapt to the immediate defense of any agent instigating violence. That was certainly the case in the incident of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis when it happened: DHS’ official statement claimed that Sosa-Celis and another man “came out of a nearby apartment and attacked the law enforcement officer with a snow shovel and broom handle,” something that clearly must have been refuted by the video evidence the public hasn’t had a change to see.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, in what has become her signature move, leapt to make wild accusations without evidence, saying that “What we saw last night in Minneapolis was an attempted murder of federal law enforcement. Our office was ambushed and attacked by three individuals who beat him with snow shovels and the handles of brooms. Fearing for his life, the office fired a defensive shot.” Less than a month later, the official position of ICE on that same incident, from its own director, is that the agents in question were lying. They’re clearly hoping that by sacrificing a pair agents in a lower-profile case, they can give the reeling department a little bit more credibility and a concrete instance of accountability that it can point to in the future when the public demands to know why they aren’t reining in their agents.
But sure, it’s Minnesota law enforcement that can’t be trusted, right?
When ICE shot Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in the leg, they claimed it was justified
They said the agent was “ambushed” by men who hit him with a shovel
They blamed Governor Walz and Mayor Frey for the attack
It was all a lie
The charges against Celis were dismissed
And the agents might be charged
— Adam Cohen (My Personal Views Only) (@axidentaliberal.bsky.social) Feb 14, 2026 at 4:55 PM
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