Handling of evidence related to Alex Pretti's death raises concerns about probe's integrity

Federal investigators are reviewing body-camera footage from multiple angles in the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse, as new revelations about evidence handling — including a lack of documented chain of custody for his registered firearm — raise concerns about the integrity and credibility of the investigation.

Pretti, who worked at the Department of Veterans Affairs, was shot and killed by a Border Patrol officer around 9 a.m. Saturday in south Minneapolis.

Two law enforcement officials told CBS News that body-camera footage from multiple federal agents exists and is currently under review. But it remains unclear if the footage will be released to the public. 

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was asked at a briefing Saturday about the FBI's role in the investigation and whether body-camera footage would be released. She did not commit to making the video public and deflected other questions, saying she would not "speak to the investigation and the details" while it continues.

The investigation is being led by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations under Special Agents in Charge Mark Zito and Jason Todd Stevens, with assistance from the FBI, according to multiple officials briefed on the case. 

FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News on Sunday, "All the pieces of the investigation are being led by DHS in HSI." But HSI lacks the ability to process certain kinds of material —  like scientific and forensic evidence including fingerprints, DNA, ballistic data and firearm-related physical evidence — so FBI investigators will be focusing on these aspects of the probe. 

Chain of custody for Pretti's handgun in question

Multiple officials briefed on the investigation said there is no documented chain of custody for Pretti's handgun, a failure that could complicate forensic reliability and undermine any future criminal or civil rights prosecution.

According to those officials, the firearm was placed on the seat of a vehicle, instead of being secured in a required plastic evidence bag and labeled with standard identifying details, including the date, the item, and the name of the last person who handled it.

The Department of Homeland Security later released a photograph of the weapon, which officials familiar with the evidence said appears to be a custom Sig Sauer P320 chambered in 9mm.

Proper chain of custody typically ensures ballistics, fingerprint and DNA findings remain admissible. Deviations from protocol can become focal points in criminal defense challenges, civil rights litigation and internal discipline reviews.

Sources briefed on the investigation add that the weapons of CBP agents at the scene of the officer-involved shooting have not been transferred to the FBI for analysis, raising questions about investigative practices, and it remains unclear exactly how many officers fired their weapons. 

Emerging questions about agents who fired shots and what took place

Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino at a briefing Sunday declined to say how many agents fired, how many shots were discharged, or whether Pretti had brandished a weapon. He said investigators would determine those facts.

Investigators have begun interviewing the agents who were on the scene, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said Monday.

At this point, the agents involved in the shooting remain on duty but have been reassigned outside Minneapolis, for "their safety," Bovino said.

"All agents that were involved in that scene are working, not in Minneapolis, but in other locations," Bovino told reporters. "That's for their safety. There's this thing called doxxing, and the safety of our employees is very important to us. We're going to keep those employees safe."

Bovino charged that Pretti had interfered with a federal operation to arrest Jose Huerta Chuma, whom he described as an undocumented immigrant with a criminal record. He framed the shooting around "choices," suggesting that Pretti had made "the choice to come into an active law enforcement scene, interfere, obstruct, delay or assault (a) law enforcement officer and they bring a weapon to do that. That is a choice that that individual made."

How these investigations typically work

Former senior DHS, ICE and HSI officials have told CBS News that officer-involved shooting investigations usually follow strict protocols, including immediate scene control, independent investigative agency leadership and secure evidence collection with documented chain of custody.

Investigations into officer-involved shootings are often coordinated with state and local authorities.

But Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara has said local authorities have received virtually no official information from the federal agencies probing the shooting.

"There were attempts yesterday to begin the investigation," O'Hara said Sunday on CBS News' "Face the Nation." "More than once, [local investigators] were not permitted to enter before the scene then was contaminated."

Normally, there would be a "robust partnership" between federal agencies, the FBI and local law enforcement in an investigation of this kind, a former DHS official said, adding this does not appear to be happening in the Pretti case. 

Another former HSI official called the crime scene "compromised," warning the spoiling of evidence could impact any future civil rights investigation.

Noem, like Patel, said Saturday that DHS is "conducting this investigation" and that it is being handled "just like we do all other officer-involved shootings."

She repeatedly said DHS is "following the exact same protocols that we always have," including those used "under the entire Trump administration and previous administrations," and emphasized that "nothing has changed" in how the department investigates such incidents.

What video of Pretti's shooting shows

A CBS News visual investigation shows Pretti holding a cellphone in his right hand and nothing in his left before being pushed by an officer. Later footage shows multiple federal agents wrestling him to the ground.

In one sequence, an officer is seen reaching into the struggle empty-handed and stepping away holding a gun, which appears to have been removed from Pretti's waistband. The first shot is fired approximately one second later. In total, roughly 10 shots can be heard.

Noem said Pretti had approached officers with a handgun and reacted violently when agents attempted to disarm him, prompting an agent to fire in self-defense.

But O'Hara said he's seen no evidence that Pretti brandished a weapon, describing him as someone who appeared to be lawfully recording law enforcement activity while legally carrying a firearm.

Court intervention 

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison said the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension — the state agency that investigates use-of-force cases — was denied access to the crime scene, even after obtaining a judicial warrant.

Ellison said Minnesota sought and obtained a temporary restraining order to prevent the federal government from destroying or altering evidence, including items federal agents removed from the scene.

"We've never had to do anything like this before," Ellison said, calling the situation "uncharted territory."

The BCA later returned to the scene to continue collecting evidence and canvassing the neighborhood, according to state officials.

Some federal agents expected to leave Minneapolis area soon

Bovino and some Border Patrol agents are expected to leave the Minneapolis area soon, three sources familiar with the move tell CBS News. Two DHS officials told CBS News that the department would begin to withdraw some of the 1,000 U.S. Customs and Border Protections agents and officers currently deployed on the ground in the Twin Cities, this week. 

One source said Bovino has been relieved of his command in Minneapolis and is expected to return to California's El Centro sector, where he served as the chief agent before the Trump administration deployed him to major American cities, including Los Angeles and Chicago.

The development follows intense backlash over how top federal officials, including Bovino, responded to Pretti's fatal shooting, which came less than a month after another person in Minneapolis, Renee Nicole Good, was fatally shot by an immigration agent. Bovino suggested over the weekend Pretti had intended to "massacre" federal agents. Some of the claims by Bovino and other officials were contradicted by witnesses and video from the scene.

Walz has called for the withdrawal of roughly 3,000 federal immigration agents from Minnesota, calling the surge unsafe and destabilizing.

Minnesota has filed lawsuits over Operation Metro Surge, calling it unprecedented and in violation of the Constitution, with the state seeking judicial intervention to protect investigative integrity.