Videos and witness accounts of deadly Minneapolis shooting at odds with official statements

Videos quickly emerged Saturday showing the fatal shooting of a Minneapolis protester by a Border Patrol agent. 

Bystander videos verified by CBS News show the scene from multiple angles, starting shortly before the encounter that ended in the shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti, an American citizen who worked as an ICU nurse.

The events unfolded at around 9 a.m. Saturday. Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino said officers were pursuing a man in the country illegally who was wanted for domestic assault. Protesters have been trying to disrupt such operations amid an ongoing federal immigration crackdown, and a group of people in the area sounded high-pitched whistles, honked horns and yelled out at the officers.

Among them was Pretti. At one point, video shows Pretti standing in the street and holding up his phone with his right hand; his left hand appears empty. 

He comes face-to-face with an officer in a tactical vest, who places his hand on Pretti and pushes him toward the sidewalk. Pretti is talking to the officer, though it is not clear what he is saying.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem later said Pretti "approached" officers with a 9mm semiautomatic handgun, but did not say whether he "brandished" the weapon. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara said he was a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry.

Videos filmed before the shooting show Pretti did not have a gun in his hands.

Protesters can be seen wandering in and out of the street as officers persist in trying to talk them back. One protester is put in handcuffs. Some officers are carrying pepper spray canisters.

Pretti comes into view again when the video shows an officer wearing tactical gear shoving a protester. The protester, who is wearing a skirt over black tights and holding a water bottle, reaches out for Pretti.

The same officer shoves Pretti in his chest, leading Pretti and the other protester to stumble backward.

A different video then shows Pretti moving toward another protester, who falls over after being shoved by the same officer. 

Pretti moves between the protester and the officer, reaching his arms out toward the officer. The officer deploys pepper spray, and Pretti raises his hand and turns his face. The officer grabs Pretti's hand to bring it behind his back, and deploys the pepper spray canister again and then pushes Pretti away.

Seconds later, at least a half-dozen federal officers surround Pretti, who is wrestled to the ground and hit several times. Several agents try to bring Pretti's arms behind his back, and he struggles.

Videos show an officer in a gray jacket, who is hovering over the scuffle with his right hand on Pretti's back, reaching into the scuffle empty-handed and then backing away from the group with what appears to be a gun in his right hand.

Someone shouts "gun, gun." It is not clear if that's a reference to the weapon authorities say Pretti had.

The agent is holding that gun and turning away from the man when the first shot is fired. Videos show the agent in the gray jacket then running across the street as numerous shots can be heard. 

Videos do not clearly show who fired the first shot. In one video, seconds before the first shot, one officer reaches for his belt and appears to draw his gun. That same officer is seen with a gun to Pretti's back as three more shots ring out. Pretti slumps to the ground. Videos show the officers backing away, some with guns drawn.

At a briefing Saturday afternoon, Noem shared an image of the gun she said was recovered. She said officers attempted to disarm the man but he "reacted violently," and "fearing for his life and the lives of his fellow officers around him, an agent fired defensive shots."

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who said he watched one of several videos, said he saw "more than six masked agents pummeling one of our constituents, shooting him to death."

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said, "I've seen the videos, from several angles, and it's sickening."

Sworn statements from witnesses

Sworn declarations submitted in federal court Saturday night by people who said they witnessed the shooting contradict key points of the events presented by federal officials.

One witness described seeing Pretti observing and filming the scene "just with his camera out. I didn't see him reach for or hold a gun." 

An agent "shoved one of the other observers to the ground" and then pepper sprayed several people, the witness said. "The man with the phone put his hands above his head and the agent sprayed him again and pushed him."

The witness continued: "The agents pulled the man on the ground. I didn't see him touch any of them — he wasn't even turned toward them. It didn't look like he was trying to resist, just trying to help the woman up. I didn't see him with a gun. They threw him to the ground. Four or five agents had him on the ground and they just started shooting him. They shot him so many times."

Another witness, a pediatrician, described watching out their apartment window and seeing "one civilian … yelling at the ICE agents, but I did not see him attack the agents or brandish a weapon of any kind."

Suddenly, the witness said, an agent "shoved him to the ground. My view of the altercation was partially obstructed, but after a few seconds, I saw at least four agents point guns at the man. Then I saw the agents shoot the man six or seven times."

"Initially I was stunned," the witness continued. "From what I could see from my apartment, there was absolutely no need for any violence, let alone lethal force by multiple officers."

The witness then described rushing down to the scene, telling officers they were a doctor and performing CPR until an EMS crew arrived. The man had at least four bullet wounds and no pulse, the witness said.