WASHINGTON: The US Justice Department has started a civil rights investigation into the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis, a senior official said on Friday (Jan 30).
The department’s investigation could potentially lead to criminal charges against the officers involved, though there is a high legal bar to bring such a case.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the FBI was examining Saturday’s shooting with potential assistance from the department’s Civil Rights Division, which typically plays a leading role in investigations into use of force by law enforcement. He cautioned the review was preliminary and he downplayed its scope.
“This is what I would describe as a standard investigation by the FBI when there’s circumstances like what we saw last Saturday,” Blanche said at a news conference.
Pretti’s shooting by immigration agents has stirred widespread outrage and prompted the Trump administration to de-escalate its immigration crackdown in Minnesota. Local officials have said the administration cannot be trusted and are pursuing their own investigation.
A preliminary review by US Customs and Border Protection said Pretti, 37, was shot by two federal officers, a Border Patrol agent and a customs officer. Pretti was the second protester to be shot and killed by federal agents in Minneapolis this month.
Video of the encounter verified by Reuters showed Pretti holding a cell phone as he was wrestled to the ground by agents. Video evidence also showed that an officer removed a gun from Pretti’s body shortly before the first shots were fired.
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