A man identified as Alex Pretti was reportedly caught on video spitting at a federal vehicle, damaging its tail light, and engaging in a scuffle with police officers just 11 days before a highly publicized shooting incident.
According to The News Movement, facial recognition analysis suggests a 97 percent likelihood that the individual in the footage is indeed Pretti.
The Department of Homeland Security has announced that it is currently examining the video as part of its ongoing investigation.
Pretti, who was a 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse, tragically lost his life on January 24, when he was shot 10 times by officers from the Department of Homeland Security.
Officials reported that Pretti was carrying a legally owned firearm, which was taken from its holster before an unnamed officer fatally shot him in broad daylight.
In the recently surfaced video, the individual believed to be Pretti is seen wearing a brown outfit that matches what he was wearing on the day of the shooting.
The clip begins with him angrily spitting at the window of the Ford Expedition SUV filled with federal officers conducting raids to arrest illegal migrants, with the man believed to be Pretti heard screaming ‘F*****g trash’ at officers.
As the Ford begins to pull away, the furious agitator angrily kicks its tail light, shattering it.
An officer then gets out of the car and fights with the man believed to be Pretti, pinning him to the ground as bystanders jeer and scream.
The protester’s hat comes off and displays the same male pattern baldness seen atop Pretti’s head during his final moments on Saturday.
New footage showed the moment an anti-ICE protestor, who appears to look like Alex Pretti, shouting at federal officers on January 13 in Minneapolis. The video was filmed by The News Movement, who were at the scene
The male protestor was seen spitting on a federal vehicle before kicking its taillight and causing it to fall off – triggering officers to tackle him to the ground
Surrounding officers then fired tear gas and pepper balls into the crowd while agents released the man from their grip and set him free.
The man, who appeared to have a gun in his waistband like Pretti did, then picked up his belongings that came off in the scuffle and walked away.
The officers he had been fighting with appeared to be ICE or Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents.
On Tuesday, it was revealed Pretti had an altercation with federal officers that saw him break a rib before his killing.
It could not be immediately confirmed whether the new clip depicts the moment of the bone breakage and whether it was filmed before or afterwards.
The man believed to be Pretti in the video did not appear to be arrested for causing damage to federal property.
Pretti’s death, which came just weeks after Renee Nicole Good was shot and killed by an ICE agent on January 7, sparked an immediate uproar across the country.
A litany of criticism on both sides of the political line has put pressure on the Trump administration to make changes to the ongoing immigration crackdown in the US.
It was also revealed on Wednesday that the two Border Patrol agents who killed Pretti have been placed on administrative leave.
Sources in Homeland Security confirmed to the Daily Mail that the agents, who have not been identified, were suspended amid an investigation into the shooting.
The recent footage showed federal officials tackling a demonstrator who donned a similar outfit to the one Pretti was wearing on the day he died
Pretti, 37, was shot and killed in Minneapolis on Saturday afternoon, triggering shock and outrage across the United States
The agents were reportedly given mental health support as standard procedure, and were placed on automatic administrative leave for at least three days.
When the agents return, they will not be allowed out on the field and will be given desk roles, sources say.
The ICE officer involved in Good’s shooting, Jonathan Ross, was placed on administrative leave, however following Pretti’s death President Trump called for a full investigation into the latest incident.
Trump officials initially attempted to portray Pretti as a ‘domestic terrorist’ because he had a legally-owned firearm at the time he was shot, however a new government report has undermined allegations he ‘brandished’ the weapon.
The new report alleged that when an officer shouted ‘gun’ during his arrest, there was no evidence Pretti had taken it off his hip.
The two Border Patrol agents who shot and killed protester Alex Pretti in Minneapolis have been placed on administrative leave
Footage of the shooting that circulated social media appeared to show a border patrol agent had disarmed Pretti moments before he was shot several times in the back.
According to the Daily Mail/JL Partners poll conducted of over 1,000 American voters on Monday, 54 percent believe that the federal law enforcement murdered Pretti. The margin of error is 3.1 percent.
More than one in five Republicans, 22 percent, said Pretti’s killing constituted murder.
Just 21 percent of all respondents indicated that shooting and killing the nurse was justified.
