Horrible news unfolded in Minneapolis as CNN anchor Sara Sidner tore into the Trump administration for what she says are outright fabrications over the controversial death of Alex Pretti—a beloved 37-year-old ICU nurse—at the hands of federal agents.
Sidner, reporting right from the frozen heart of the city, accused White House officials of spinning a narrative that simply doesn’t line up with eyewitness videos splashed across social media.
Sidner reported that Pretti was gunned down by a Customs and Border Protection officer as he tried to protect two female legal observers during a heated immigration sweep. “People are braving Arctic temps every night, refusing to let ICE take over their city,” she told viewers. “But instead of coming clean, the Trump administration has gone on the attack—blaming Alex Pretti himself rather than their own agents who pulled the trigger.”
Sidner then played several cellphone clips recorded by onlookers, shredding the government’s version of events. “What you’re about to see is raw and shocking—the most unfiltered footage yet of those chaotic moments outside the local donut shop,” she warned. In the clearest video, Pretti is seen using his phone to film as Border Patrol arrives, then steps into the street flagging vehicles. At no point, Sidner points out, does he brandish a weapon—contradicting the Department of Homeland Security’s official claim Pretti, quote, ‘approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a nine-millimeter semiautomatic handgun.’
Instead, viewers see Pretti trying to move another protester out of harm’s way as federal agents aggressively tackle a demonstrator nearby. Pepper spray fills the air, agents pile onto Pretti, and one officer—clutching a pepper spray canister—pummels his face. Throughout the dramatic takedown, Pretti appears unarmed, holding just his cell phone. Seconds later shouts of, ‘He’s got a gun!’ erupt. But, shockingly, the video shows an agent grabbing a gun from Pretti’s belt—never shown being drawn by Pretti himself. Minnesota state authorities would later confirm the nurse had a lawful permit to carry the gun.
What happened next sent chills through the crowd: an officer over Pretti suddenly fires his weapon. Pretti, miraculously, manages to rise to his knees, but is then met with a barrage—at least ten more shots ring out, and he collapses face down. Just moments after the fatal gunfire, federal officials doubled down, slapping Pretti with further allegations despite the damning video evidence. The fallout has left the city in uproar, and the Trump administration scrambling under fierce public scrutiny.
