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According to initial federal statements, a U.S. Border Patrol agent fired after Pretti allegedly approached officers with a weapon and resisted efforts to disarm him. Those claims were quickly challenged. Multiple bystander videos surfaced online within hours, showing Pretti holding a phone in the moments leading up to the shooting. In the footage, he appears to be backing away and speaking as officers converge on him. The videos do not clearly show a firearm in his hands, nor do they depict an imminent threat that would obviously justify lethal force.
Witnesses at the scene corroborated what the footage suggested. Several said Pretti had been filming the operation, something that has become increasingly common in Minneapolis amid heightened federal enforcement activity. Recording law enforcement in public spaces is legal, and many residents view it as a necessary safeguard in an era of aggressive policing tactics.
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