Kamal Ghorui
US President Donald Trump has reacted to the fatal shooting of a 37-year-old man by federal immigration officers in Minneapolis, calling the incident a “cover-up” and launching a multi-pronged attack on Minnesota’s Democratic leaders.Trump posted a series of statements on Truth Social less than two hours after federal agents shot dead Alex Pretti, a Minneapolis resident and US citizen who police later said was a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry. The GOP leader shared an image of a handgun and accused state and city officials of neglecting immigration enforcement in the Blue region.Trump said the man killed was armed: “This is the gunman’s gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go – What is that all about? Where are the local Police? Why weren’t they allowed to protect ICE Officers?”He claimed that police had been “called off” by local leaders and that federal agents were forced to protect themselves. Trump went on to accuse Minnesota officials of corruption involving millions of dollars, asking, “Why does Ilhan Omar have $34 Million Dollars in her account? And where are the Tens of Billions of Dollars that have been stolen from the once Great State of Minnesota?”He added federal officers were present in Minnesota to fight the said corruption: “We are there because of massive Monetary Fraud, with Billions of Dollars missing, and Illegal Criminals that were allowed to infiltrate the State through the Democrats’ Open Border Policy. We want the money back, and we want it back, NOW.”In a follow-up post, Trump reiterated the ‘cover-up’ claim: “AMONG OTHER THINGS, THIS IS A ‘COVER UP’ FOR THE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS THAT HAVE BEEN STOLEN FROM THE ONCE GREAT STATE (BUT SOON TO BE GREAT AGAIN!) OF MINNESOTA!”The Minnesota Star Tribune later identified the man killed as Alex Pretti. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara confirmed that a 37-year-old man had died and that the man was legally carrying the weapon.Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said federal officers fired “defensive shots” after a man armed with a handgun approached them and “violently resisted” when they attempted to disarm him. Top White House aide Stephen Miller doubled down on this claim. Congresswoman and Somali leader Ilhan Omar responded by describing the killing as “an execution by immigration enforcement”. Zohran Mamdani and other democratic leaders like AOC agreed to this as well. Omar accused the Trump administration of trying “to beat us into submission rather than protect us.”The killing comes amid daily protests in Minneapolis following the death of Renee Good earlier this month, who was shot by an ICE officer named Jonathan Ross during an operation. After Saturday’s shooting, demonstrators gathered at the scene, chanting “ICE out now.” Governor Tim Walz was the first one to confirm the fatal shooting on his social media. Vice president JD Vance also weighed in, saying federal agents were sent to Minnesota to do their jobs, and the state leadership is obstructing them.
