GOP Sen. Cassidy calls for probe after Border Patrol agent kills Minneapolis man

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., called for a full investigation after a federal agent fatally shot a reportedly armed man in Minneapolis on Saturday, calling the incident “incredibly disturbing.”

Cassidy joined a chorus of Democratic lawmakers raising questions following the shooting death of Alex J. Pretti, a 37-year-old Minneapolis resident, who was killed Saturday by a Border Patrol agent. Pretti allegedly confronted officers during a Department of Homeland Security operation in south Minneapolis and was carrying a gun, according to the agency.

“The events in Minneapolis are incredibly disturbing,” Cassidy said in an article on X. “The credibility of ICE and DHS is at stake. There must be a full joint federal and state investigation.”

Cassidy added that “we can trust the American people with the truth.”

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Sen. Bill Cassidy called for a full federal and state investigation after a Border Patrol agent fatally shot an armed man during a DHS operation in Minneapolis. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

The Louisiana Republican’s comments were apparently at odds with those of members of his party, including President Donald Trump, who said in an article on Truth Social after the shooting that federal agents “had to protect themselves” due to a lack of support from local police in Minneapolis.

“It’s the shooter’s gun, loaded (with two extra full magazines!) and ready to go. What is it? Where are the local police? Why weren’t they allowed to protect the ICE agents?” Trump wrote in the message. “The mayor and governor canceled them? It says a lot of these officers weren’t allowed to do their job, that ICE had to protect itself. That’s not an easy thing to do!”

Last week, Trump pledged his support to U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow if she entered the Republican Party primary in Louisiana, challenging Cassidy, who has served in the U.S. Senate since 2015. Letlow launched her Senate bid days later.

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Kristi Noem, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), during a press conference at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) headquarters in Washington, DC, Saturday, January 24, 2026. (Valérie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Cassidy was one of the Senate Republicans who voted to convict Trump after the House impeached him in 2021. The Senate vote ultimately did not meet the threshold required to convict Trump.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a news conference Saturday that the incident occurred while DHS agents were conducting “targeted operations” in Minneapolis against an illegal immigrant with a violent criminal history.

“An individual approached U.S. Border Patrol agents with a 9-millimeter semi-automatic handgun,” Noem said, adding that agents attempted to disarm him.

“The officers attempted to disarm this individual, but the armed suspect reacted violently,” Noem said. “Fearing for his life and the lives of other officers around him, an officer fired defensive shots.”

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Noem said Pretti had “two magazines containing ammunition containing dozens of rounds” and no identification, adding that “this appears to be a situation where an individual arrived on scene to inflict maximum damage on individuals and kill law enforcement.”

She said DHS was investigating the shooting “as we do all other police-involved shootings,” adding that additional details would be forthcoming.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Democrat of Minnesota, said during a news conference Saturday that “we need ICE out of Minnesota,” while placing blame on the Trump administration.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar called for the removal of ICE from Minnesota while criticizing the Trump administration following a deadly Border Patrol shooting in Minneapolis. (Fox News)

“I personally warned them that there would be more deaths, that this would happen more,” she said. “And clearly, they’re not listening. So we’re asking citizens across the country to talk to their Republican representatives to make them understand that this is not America. This has to stop.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to Klobuchar’s comments in an X-rated article on Saturday, saying federal agents should not be expelled from Minnesota.

“We need dangerous criminal illegal aliens out of Minnesota. Democrats have their priorities completely reversed. They will not keep the American people safe,” she wrote.

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In his own message, Vice President JD Vance blamed the recent unrest in Minneapolis on “far-left agitators.”

“This level of technical chaos is unique to Minneapolis,” he posted on X on Saturday evening. “This is a direct result of far-left agitators, working with local authorities.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security and the White House for comment.

Jasmine Baehr and Alex Nitzberg of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.