Alex Pretti’s family say they have no answers nine months after federal agents killed him

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The parents of Alex Pretti, an American man shot and killed by immigration agents in Minneapolis in January, are accusing the Department of Justice of violating their rights under a federal victims’ rights law, as they demand transparency and justice in their son’s death.

In a July letter to Attorney General Todd Blanche — obtained exclusively by CNN — an attorney representing Michael and Susan Pretti wrote they have not received any substantive updates from the DOJ regarding an investigation into their son’s death, and called the DOJ’s attitude toward the case cruel.

“The government’s pattern of conduct is not only unconscionable, but unlawful,” the letter says.

The letter goes on to say the Pretti family met with US Attorney for the District of Minnesota Dan Rosen on July 13, the same day Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced in a news conference that federal officials had handed over volumes of evidence from Pretti’s shooting.

However, the letter says, despite a public acknowledgment from local officials of an evidence-sharing agreement, Rosen refused to provide any information and would not even confirm the arrangement.

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“It is impossible to convey how the government’s refusal to engage in transparent communication with the Pretti family has compounded their heartbreak,” the letter says.

“Further, with each such refusal, U.S. Attorney Rosen even refused to explain the basis for his position, instead stating only that ‘I can’t tell you for all kinds of reasons,’ without providing a single one,” according to the letter.

CNN has reached out to the DOJ and the US Attorney for Minnesota.

Pretti’s parents and attorney are set to address the media on October 27 in an 11 a.m. CT news conference, their first since the 37-year-old ICU nurse’s death.

Pretti’s death was captured in its entirety on video. Like some other incidents that occurred as a result of the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration crackdown, the footage from Pretti’s shooting differed from the version of events provided by the Department of Homeland Security.

Kristi Noem, then-DHS secretary, initially described Pretti as a “terrorist” who “attacked” officers after “brandishing” a weapon, though the video disputed those claims. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller referred to Pretti as an “assassin” who tried to murder federal agents.

The footage shows, minutes before the fatal encounter with Pretti, immigration agents patrolling a Minneapolis street and interacting with bystanders. A witness, Nilson Barahona, told CNN agents were trying to apprehend someone who fled into a donut shop that locked its doors, leaving the group of federal officers on the sidewalk and street. Agents detained one observer as others blew whistles, yelled and recorded video on their phones.

Video shows Pretti attempting to intervene in a scuffle between an observer and the agents.

During the incident, Pretti was pepper-sprayed in the face. One of the officers can be heard in the footage shouting: “Gun! Gun! Gun!” as Pretti is on his knees and bent forward. An agent removed Pretti’s gun from his waistband and can be seen exiting the skirmish. At about the same time, one agent drew his service weapon.

About a second after the agent holding Pretti’s weapon moved away, the officer who drew his own weapon appeared to fire several shots at Pretti before another agent drew his weapon and a shot rang out. The other officer then raised his gun and fired more shots. At least 10 gunshots can be heard on the video.

The DHS report on its initial investigation into Pretti’s death says an officer yelled, “He’s got a gun” multiple times before the officers fired.

Pretti’s death followed the fatal shooting of Renee Good on January 7 and the non-fatal shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis on January 14 by immigration agents during Operation Metro Surge. Those incidents prompted significant protests in Minneapolis and across the country for weeks.

Hennepin County prosecutors have fought the DOJ for key evidence in Pretti’s death for months, after federal law enforcement repeatedly threw up blockades to their access.

On the day Pretti was killed, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension attempted to access the scene to launch an investigation but was banned by federal authorities. CNN was on scene the next day when the BCA first accessed the scene on a court order from a state judge.

State and local investigators sued the Trump administration in federal court to obtain evidence in Pretti’s killing. After an evidence-sharing agreement between the DOJ and Minnesota investigators was finalized in June, Hennepin County prosecutors received volumes of evidence in Pretti’s shooting.

Weeks later, the DOJ abruptly changed course and stopped sharing information, leaving Hennepin County prosecutors unable to access crucial evidence such as the weapons used to shoot Pretti and the firearm Pretti was carrying in his waistband at the time of the altercation, according to court records filed October 13.

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The letter from Pretti’s parents asks the DOJ to identify the federal employees who shot and killed Pretti, commit to sharing information with state and local investigators, confirm whether the FBI is continuing to investigate Pretti’s murder, and return any items of Pretti’s personal property no longer needed for evidentiary purposes.

“No family should have to beg the U.S. government to do its job,” the letter says. “And no government should act with such caprice.”

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今年一月，美国男子亚历克斯·普雷蒂在明尼阿波利斯被移民官员枪杀。他的父母指责司法部违反了联邦受害者权利法，并要求对儿子的死因进行透明调查，伸张正义。

在 CNN 独家获得的一封 7 月份写给司法部长托德·布兰奇的信中，代表迈克尔和苏珊·普雷蒂的律师写道，他们没有收到司法部关于对其儿子死亡调查的任何实质性进展，并称司法部对该案的态度是残酷的。

信中写道：“政府的这种行为模式不仅丧尽天良，而且违法。”

信中还提到，普雷蒂一家于 7 月 13 日会见了明尼苏达州地区检察官丹·罗森，同一天，亨内平县检察官玛丽·莫里亚蒂在新闻发布会上宣布，联邦官员已移交了大量普雷蒂枪击案的证据。

然而，信中指出，尽管地方官员公开承认存在证据共享协议，但罗森拒绝提供任何信息，甚至不愿证实该安排。

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信中写道：“政府拒绝与普雷蒂家族进行透明沟通，这加剧了他们的痛苦，其程度之深难以言表。”

信中还写道：“此外，对于每一次这样的拒绝，美国检察官罗森甚至拒绝解释他立场的依据，只是说‘我不能告诉你，原因有很多’，却没有提供任何理由。”

CNN已联系美国司法部和明尼苏达州联邦检察官。

普雷蒂的父母和律师将于 10 月 27 日上午 11 点（中部时间）举行新闻发布会，向媒体发表讲话。这是这位 37 岁的重症监护室护士去世后，他们首次公开露面。

普雷蒂的死被完整地拍摄了下来。与特​​朗普政府持续打击移民政策所导致的其他一些事件一样，普雷蒂枪击案的录像与国土安全部提供的事件版本有所不同。

时任国土安全部部长克里斯蒂·诺姆最初将普雷蒂描述为“恐怖分子”，称其在“挥舞”武器后“袭击”了执法人员，但视频驳斥了这些说法。白宫副幕僚长斯蒂芬·米勒则称普雷蒂为试图谋杀联邦特工的“刺客”。

录像显示，在普雷蒂遭遇致命袭击前几分钟，移民执法人员正在明尼阿波利斯街头巡逻，并与路人互动。目击者尼尔森·巴拉霍纳告诉CNN，执法人员当时正试图逮捕一名逃进一家甜甜圈店的人，但店门随即锁上，留下这群联邦执法人员在人行道和街道上。执法人员拘留了一名旁观者，其他人则吹口哨、大声喊叫，并用手机拍摄视频。

视频显示，普雷蒂试图介入一名观察员和特工之间的冲突。

事件中，普雷蒂被喷了辣椒水。录像显示，普雷蒂跪在地上，身体前倾时，一名警员高喊：“枪！枪！枪！”一名警员从普雷蒂的腰间拔出了枪，随后离开了现场。几乎与此同时，另一名警员拔出了配枪。

在持普雷蒂武器的警员离开大约一秒钟后，拔枪的警员似乎向普雷蒂开了几枪，随后另一名警员也拔枪射击，枪声响起。之后，这名警员举枪继续射击。视频中至少可以听到10声枪响。

国土安全部关于普雷蒂死亡事件的初步调查报告称，在警察开枪之前，一名警官曾多次喊道：“他有枪”。

普雷蒂之死发生在1月7日蕾妮·古德被枪杀和1月14日胡里奥·索萨-塞利斯在“地铁突击行动”中被移民执法人员开枪击中但未致其死亡之后。这些事件在明尼阿波利斯和全美各地引发了持续数周的大规模抗议活动。

几个月来，亨内平县检察官一直在与司法部争夺普雷蒂死亡案的关键证据，此前联邦执法部门多次阻挠他们获取这些证据。

普雷蒂遇害当天，明尼苏达州刑事侦查局试图进入案发现场展开调查，但遭到联邦当局的禁止。第二天，CNN记者在州法官的法庭命令下首次进入案发现场时抵达现场。

州和地方调查人员向联邦法院起诉特朗普政府，要求获取普雷蒂遇害案的证据。6月，司法部与明尼苏达州调查人员达成证据共享协议后，亨内平县检察官收到了大量与普雷蒂枪击案相关的证据。

几周后，司法部突然改变策略，停止分享信息，导致亨内平县检察官无法获得关键证据，例如射杀普雷蒂的武器以及普雷蒂在冲突发生时腰间携带的枪支，根据 10 月 13 日提交的法庭记录显示。

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普雷蒂的父母在信中要求司法部查明枪杀普雷蒂的联邦雇员身份，承诺与州和地方调查人员分享信息，确认联邦调查局是否仍在调查普雷蒂的谋杀案，并归还不再需要作为证据的普雷蒂个人物品。

信中写道：“任何家庭都不应该乞求美国政府履行职责。任何政府都不应该如此反复无常。”