Border agents involved in fatal shooting of Alex Pretti placed on leave

US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) says two agents involved in the fatal shooting of an American citizen in Minneapolis have been placed on administrative leave.

The killing of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse, on Saturday provoked fresh protests in the state of Minnesota, public outcry across the US and calls from lawmakers in both parties to remove the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

According to a preliminary DHS report sent to Congress, two officers fired their weapons at Pretti during a scuffle. Initial official accounts had alleged Pretti brandished his gun.

It is unclear when the agents were put on leave, or how long they will stay off the job.

CBP told the BBC on Tuesday it had taken the agents off duty following standard protocol. Typically federal law-enforcement agents involved in a shooting remain on leave while the incident is investigated.

On Sunday, CBP Commander Gregory Bovino, though, had told reporters that the agents were still on the job, but working in a different city.

New footage published by the News Movement and shared with BBC News shows an altercation between Pretti and federal officers 11 days before his death.

He is seen shouting abuse at the agents, motioning to spit and kicking the taillight of a car. Federal agents emerge from the vehicle and wrestle him to the ground. A gun is visible in his waistband.

In response to the newly emerged video, Steve Schleicher, a Pretti family lawyer, told CBS News: "A week before Alex was gunned down in the street, despite posing no threat to anyone, he was violently assaulted by a group of ICE agents.

"Nothing that happened a full week before could possibly have justified Alex's killing at the hands of ICE on Jan 24."

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent who shot another US citizen, 37-year-old Renee Good, in Minneapolis on 7 January was also placed on administrative leave, pending an investigation.

While President Donald Trump in recent days said he intended to "de-escalate" in Minneapolis, where DHS has been carrying out its Operation Metro Surge since 1 December, he appeared to ratchet up a war of words with the city's mayor on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey wrote on X that his city would not change its sanctuary policies, which limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, and that he had told Trump's border tsar Tom Homan that "Minneapolis does not and will not enforce federal immigration laws".

In response, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: "Could somebody in his inner sanctum please explain that this statement is a very serious violation of the Law, and that he is PLAYING WITH FIRE!"

Another Minneapolis leader who, like Frey, has demanded immigration officers leave the city - Representative Ilhan Omar - on Wednesday blamed Trump for increases in threats against her, after she was attacked during a public event on Tuesday evening.

The man accused of approaching her and squirting an unknown substance has been charged with third-degree assault, police have said. According to Alpha News, the syringe allegedly used in the attack by the suspect, Anthony Kazmierczak, was filled with apple cider vinegar. The BBC is seeking to confirm the report.

Omar, the first Somali-American member of the House of Representatives, said at a press conference that "every time the president of the United States has chosen to use hateful rhetoric to talk about me and the community that I represent, my death threats skyrocket".

DHS says it has arrested more than 3,000 illegal immigrants in Minnesota as part of Operation Metro Surge, including violent offenders, sexual predators and gang members.

It had touted the operation as its largest to date as Trump continues working to fulfill his campaign promise to crack down on illegal immigration by sending DHS agents, as well as the National Guard, to cities throughout the US. His efforts have been met with protests and legal challenges in other Democratic-led places like Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon.

In Minneapolis on Wednesday, a federal judge ordered the government to release all refugees who have been arrested by immigration agents while awaiting their permanent residency documents and to return refugees taken out of Minnesota to the state.

In a strongly-worded ruling, Judge John Tunheim said refugees "are not committing crimes on our streets, nor did they illegally cross the border," adding that the US had been "a haven of individual liberties".

Shortly after Pretti was killed, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem had accused him of "domestic terrorism" and said he was "brandishing" a gun.

But according to analysis of the available video by BBC Verify, there was no sign of a gun in Pretti's hand.

The DHS preliminary report to Congress said that Pretti and CBP agents were in a struggle when an officer yelled out that Pretti had a gun, and then two agents shot him. This differed from initial accounts from the Trump administration that an agent had fired defensive shots.

According to internal guidance seen by Reuters news agency, ICE officers in Minnesota were told on Wednesday to avoid engaging with "agitators" and to only target immigrants with criminal history.

Now, Republican and Democratic lawmakers are calling for Noem and the White House's lead adviser on immigration, Stephen Miller, to be removed. On Wednesday, senior Democrats in the House threatened to begin impeachment proceedings against Noem unless she resigned or was fired.

Meanwhile, members of both parties are openly discussing removing funding for DHS in spending legislation that Congress must pass to keep the government from shutting down on 1 February.

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