Right-wing militia leader Ammon Bundy condemned the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis, calling it “sickening” and warning of “parallels of history repeating itself.”
In response, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson defended the administration’s immigration approach in a statement to Newsweek.
“This is very simple. No one needs to be arrested. Illegal aliens have a choice. They can avoid detention by using the CBP home app, receive a free flight home and $2,600. Comparisons of illegal alien detention centers to internment camps used during World War II are deranged and lazy. These smears against our brave ICE law enforcement are no doubt contributing to the more than 1,300% increase in assaults against them,” the statement reads.
Why It Matters
Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse, was shot and killed by federal immigration officers on January 24—just weeks after another 37-year-old, Renée Good, was also fatally shot by an ICE agent in Minneapolis. The deaths occurred amid protests in Minnesota as the Trump administration escalated immigration enforcement activity in the state.
The Pretti shooting, along with other allegations about enforcement tactics—including claims that a 5-year-old was used as bait—has fueled rapid backlash across party lines. Critics have called the shooting unjustified and have questioned the government’s public account of what happened.
DHS has said Pretti approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a handgun. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin previously told Newsweek the department viewed it as a “situation where an individual wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement.”
What We Know So Far
Videos verified by multiple news outlets appear to contradict key elements of the government’s claims. The footage shows Pretti holding a cellphone in his right hand and nothing in his left hand at the moment he was shot. Reports also indicate that before the shooting, federal agents had removed Pretti’s handgun—legally carried with a license—from its holster.
Bundy, who rose to national attention after leading the 2016 occupation of Oregon’s Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, has long been associated with anti-government activism and militia politics. That standoff lasted more than a month, was framed as a protest of federal land-management policies, and ended with arrests and prosecutions.
Bundy’s Break With the Movement
Bundy discussed Pretti’s death in an interview with The Atlantic, saying, “It’s sickening to me, just to see the parallels of history repeating itself.”
He also said, “When it comes to the more humanitarian side of it, I think the left has it much more correct than the nationalist right.”
Bundy’s father, Cliven Bundy, was involved in a separate 2014 standoff with the Bureau of Land Management over grazing fees near the family ranch in Nevada.
In the years since the Malheur occupation, Bundy has publicly criticized parts of the militia movement. New York magazine reported in 2018 that he broke with the movement in part over immigration and became critical of Trump-era nationalism and immigration positions.
“We have been asked by God to help, to be welcoming, to assist strangers, to not vex them,” he told the publication at the time.
Even so, Bundy has remained active in conservative politics. He led protests in 2020 over COVID-19 restrictions and later ran for governor of Idaho in 2022—first seeking the Republican nomination before continuing as an independent. He received just over 17 percent of the vote in a race won by GOP Governor Brad Little.
Other Militia Leaders Speak Out
Bundy is not the only militia-linked figure criticizing the administration’s messaging around Pretti’s killing. A Virginia Kekoas militia leader also denounced officials’ comments about Pretti as “shameful,” according to reporting shared by documentarian Ford Fischer.
The Latest on the Investigation
Federal authorities have placed the agents involved on leave, and the Department of Justice has opened a civil rights investigation into Pretti’s death.
The agents have been identified as 43-year-old Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and 35-year-old Customs and Border Protection officer Raymundo Gutierrez, according to government records viewed by ProPublica.
What They’re Saying
President Donald Trump addressed the investigation last week, saying: “You can’t have guns. You can’t walk in with guns. You just can’t. You can’t walk in with guns. You can’t do that. But it’s just a very unfortunate incident.”
Steve Schleicher, an attorney representing Pretti’s parents, previously said in a statement provided to Newsweek: “A week before Alex was gunned down in the street—despite posing no threat to anyone—he was violently assaulted by a group of ICE agents. Nothing that happened a full week before could possibly have justified Alex’s killing at the hands of ICE on Jan 24.”
Pretti’s parents also issued a blistering joint statement disputing the government’s version of events and accusing the administration of spreading falsehoods about their son. They said he was holding his phone, had no gun in hand, and was trying to protect a woman during a chaotic encounter involving pepper spray.
What Happens Next
Investigations into Pretti’s killing are ongoing as political pressure builds. Democrats in Congress have sought to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem over the deaths of Pretti and Good, further intensifying scrutiny of federal immigration operations and the administration’s response.
