Bovino: Dead Man Wanted to Do 'Maximum Damage, Massacre Law Enforcement'

U.S. Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino said Saturday that the Minneapolis man shot and killed by a Border Patrol agent had approached agents "with a 9 millimeter semi-automatic handgun" and that the matter "looks like a situation where an individual wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement."

The incident, Bovino said, took place at 9:05 a.m. local time, when "DHS law enforcement officers were conducting a targeted operation in Minneapolis against an illegal alien" whose criminal history "includes domestic assault to intentionally inflict bodily harm, disorderly conduct, and driving without a valid license."

During the operation, Bovino said, the man who was killed, who has been identified as 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti of Minneapolis, "approached U.S. Border Patrol agents" with the weapon.

"The agents attempted to disarm the individual, but he violently resisted," said Bovino. "Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, a Border Patrol agent fired defensive shots."

He added that medics on the scene "immediately delivered medical aid to the subject, but the subject was pronounced dead" there.

Bovino also described a volatile scene in which "about 200 rioters arrived" and "began to obstruct and assault law enforcement."

The man that was killed, Bovino said, "also had two loaded magazines and no accessible ID."

"This looks like a situation where an individual wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement," he stressed.

After the shooting, Bovino said, "about 200 rioters arrived at the scene and began to obstruct and assault law enforcement."

"Crowd control measures have been deployed for the safety of the public and law enforcement," he continued. "This situation is evolving, and more information is forthcoming.”

The agent who shot Pretti, said Bovino, who did not address the shot man by name, was "highly trained" and "had been serving as a Border Patrol agent for eight years."

The agent, who was not named, "has extensive training as a range safety officer and less lethal officer," Bovino added.

Saturday's incident, said Bovino, "is only the latest attack on law enforcement across the country."

"The men and women of DHS have been attacked, shot at, doxxed, had their family members threatened, and as we have seen, more than 100 vehicle rammings over the past year against federal law enforcement."

Bovino called for cooperation from state and local officials.

"We will not allow violence against our law enforcement officers, and we need state and local help," he said. "State and local law enforcement to help us coordinate to get violent criminals off the streets."

Bovino criticized Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Police Chief Brian O’Hara, who earlier said that the killed man had only a criminal record involving traffic violations, was an American citizen, and that he was a legal permit-holding gun owner.
"Mayor Frey and Chief O'Hara, just a few minutes ago, did the opposite of that by omitting the fact that the suspect had a gun and magazines full of ammunition," said Bovino.

He also stressed that those who impede federal agents are breaking the law.

"I want to reiterate what President Donald Trump, Secretary Kristi Noem, myself, Director Marcos Charles, and so many others have said time and again," he said. "If you obstruct a law enforcement officer or assault a law enforcement officer, you are in violation of the law and will be arrested."

"Our law enforcement officers take an oath to protect the public," he added. "We go to work every day to protect our friends, our neighbors, and our fellow citizens."

"The fact of the matter is that the law does not enforce itself," said Bovino. "It takes men and women who are willing to risk their lives to enforce it.”

When pressed by reporters about whether Pretti had brandished the weapon and when agents learned he had it, Bovino declined to provide additional details, but referenced an image of the gun displayed during the briefing.

"It appears to be a semiautomatic high-capacity type, possibly a Sig Sauer 9mm," he said.