What we covered here
• Key player sidelined: Top Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino and some of his agents are expected to leave Minneapolis on Tuesday, sources said. The Department of Homeland Security has also suspended his access to his social media accounts, a source told CNN. President Donald Trump has dispatched border czar Tom Homan to oversee enforcement operations in the city.
• Trump calls: Trump spoke with Gov. Tim Walz and said they seemed to be “on a similar wavelength.” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said he also spoke with Trump, who agreed “the present situation cannot continue.”
• Few details back claims: Federal officials have declined to provide critical details substantiating their claim that an agent shot ICU nurse Alex Pretti in self-defense. Read CNN’s fact check and watch our analysis of videos from several angles.
Our live coverage has moved here.
Dozens arrested outside hotel near Minneapolis where Bovino is reportedly staying
Approximately 26 people were arrested Monday night during a protest outside a suburban Twin Cities hotel, police told CNN.
Video from the Associated Press showed dozens of protesters gathered at the SpringHill Suites in Maple Grove, where they believed top Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino was staying. The protesters used pots, pans and kitchen utensils to make noise outside the building.
“The situation escalated when individuals in the crowd engaged in unlawful behavior,” the Maple Grove Police Department said in a statement on Facebook. “Property damage occurred and objects were thrown at officers.”
Police issued a dispersal order and “those who failed to comply with lawful orders or committed crimes were arrested,” the statement said.
By 10 p.m., the crowd had dispersed, the police statement read.
Police told CNN they were still processing the arrests and the final number may change.
CNN has reached out to CBP an DHS for more information. The hotel declined to comment.
Pretti's labor union slams "senseless killing of our union brother," demands independent investigation
The American Federation of Government Employees denounced the Trump administration’s “abhorrent rhetoric” following the killing Alex Pretti, a union member and ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center.
“Alex was a son, a colleague, and a fellow union brother, not an ‘assassin’ or a ‘domestic terrorist,” AFGE Local 3669 said in a statement Monday, calling for a “full, transparent, independent third-party investigation” into Pretti’s killing.
Pretti's sister says the loss of her brother is a pain "no words can fully capture"
Micayla Pretti, Alex Pretti’s younger sister, remembered her brother in a statement Monday as a “kind, generous” person who “had a way of lighting up every room he walked into,” and calling him her hero.
“All Alex ever wanted was to help someone––anyone. Even in his very last moments on this earth, he was simply trying to do just that,” she went on to say, apparently referencing videos showing the ICU nurse putting himself between immigration officers and a woman they’d just shoved before they spray him with a chemical irritant and, moments later, shoot him.
“When does this end? How many more innocent lives must be lost before we say enough?” Micayla Pretti said.
Obama's DHS secretary tells CNN why he is pleased that Trump is sending his border czar to Minnesota
Jeh Johnson, who served as Homeland Security Secretary in the Obama administration, tells CNN’s Kaitlan Collins he hopes White House border czar Tom Homan can “calm things down” in Minnesota.
Gov. Walz says there was a "change in tone" during his conversation with Trump
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said he felt “a definite change of tone” during his phone conversation with President Donald Trump Monday, telling MPR News, “I’m going to take them for their word right now.”
During the conversation, Walz said he asked Trump to allow the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to conduct an independent investigation into the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti – both US citizens shot by federal officers during the sweeping immigration enforcement operation in the Twin Cities. “He said he would look into it,” Walz said of Trump’s response.
The president also agreed to consider reducing the number of immigration enforcement agents in the state, Walz told MPR.
The governor said he plans to speak with Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, and strike a collaborative plan. Homan is expected take over immigration enforcement operations in Minnesota as top Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino leaves the state.
“We’ve laid out the case that we do the right thing. We don’t want criminals here, but we also recognize that someone coming here to find a better life should be treated with dignity, that Americans shouldn’t be fearing for their lives to go out of their house just because of the color of their skin,” Walz said.
“I think Donald Trump understands it, too,” he added.
Kash Patel says FBI is looking at Signal chats used by Minnesota protesters
FBI Director Kash Patel said Monday his agency is looking into Signal group chats allegedly used by Minneapolis residents to share sightings of federal agents, warning that people cannot “create a scenario that illegally entraps and puts law enforcement in harm’s way.”
Patel told conservative influencer Benny Johnson in a podcast interview the FBI is investigating whether any laws were broken in Signal group chats.
Patel did not elaborate on specific instances where Signal groups allegedly led to a crime being committed. CNN has reached out to the FBI for more information.
Signal is a messaging app known for its robust security features, such as end-to-end encryption, meaning data is scrambled in transit and can only be seen by the sender and recipient.
As the Trump administration deploys thousands of federal officers to carry out turbocharged immigration operations across the country – with the Minneapolis area now the epicenter – growing networks of volunteers who call themselves ICE observers appear to be intensifying their efforts, CNN previously reported.
Volunteers document arrests, some tail ICE agents in vehicles, while others blow whistles warning community members of ICE enforcement.
Justice Department withdraws request for Don Lemon arrest warrant, but can try again to seek charges
The Justice Department has formally withdrawn its request for the chief judge in Minnesota’s federal court to issue arrest warrants for journalist Don Lemon and four others for their alleged involvement in an anti-ICE protest that disrupted a church service in Minnesota.
Their request was made after a lower court judge refused to approve criminal complaints against several people the department claims were part of the protest. A person familiar with the matter said that Lemon is one the individuals whose arrest warrants were declined.
Despite their withdrawal, the DOJ can still attempt to bring charges against Lemon, including through a grand jury indictment. Officials have not publicly said what their plans are moving forward.
Lemon has said that he was present at the demonstration as a journalist and not as a protester. In a video of the episode that he posted on YouTube, Lemon says “I’m just here photographing, I’m not part of the group … I’m a journalist.”
Three other people have been charged in connection to the protest.
Roughly 3,000 federal agents are in the Minneapolis area, DHS says
The Department of Homeland Security on Monday said approximately 3,000 officers and agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection are currently conducting immigration operations in the Minneapolis area.
The agency’s response, noted in a court filing, comes after a federal judge earlier Monday requested details of the current scale of “Operation Metro Surge.”
During the earlier hearing, the Justice Department said a total of 4,000 federal agents had been surged statewide, with roughly 2,000 coming from ICE and 2,000 from CBP.
Some agents are expected to leave Minneapolis Tuesday, along with top Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino, sources say.
Minnesotans are glad to see Bovino go, state attorney general says
After federal agents shot and killed 37-year-old protester and ICU nurse Alex Pretti, Border Patrol commander-at-large Gregory Bovino is expected to leave Minnesota. “Minnesotans have had quite enough of Mr. Bovino,” the state’s Attorney General Keith Ellison told CNN’s Anderson Cooper.
Pretti wanted to "make a difference" after Renee Good's killing, former patient says
Alex Pretti was inspired to start protesting against ICE in Minneapolis after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Good, according to Marta Crownhart, a Navy veteran who was treated by Pretti earlier this month.
Crownhart said she’d discussed Good’s killing with Pretti while she was his patient at the Minneapolis VA hospital.
“He just knew that she was a good person, from what he had heard, and that she was killed for no good reason,” she said in an interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins.
Pretti “felt so strongly about how Renee Good had died,” Crownhart said, and had described “the difference that he wanted to make in the world and in Minneapolis.”
Crownhart remembered him as a “very caring, kind-hearted” person who treated each patient like they were his only responsibility.
“He was never preoccupied,” she said. “He never was thinking about anybody else. He was always there for you.”
Returning to the Minneapolis VA, where she volunteers, it was “very difficult to look at the doors and know that he’s not there.”
But what hurt the most, according to Crownhart, was hearing DHS Secretary Kristi Noem call Pretti a “domestic terrorist” shortly after he was killed.
“I can’t imagine his parents listening to that or hearing what she had said about him,” she said, tearing up. “I think that hurt worse than anything.”
Fundraiser for Pretti's family has raised more than $1.4 million in donations
A GoFundMe campaign has raised over $1.4 million for the family of Alex Pretti, the 37-year-old ICU nurse killed by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis over the weekend. Over 35,000 people had donated.
The fundraiser will “support the loved ones he leaves behind with immediate and ongoing needs” according to its description.
A representative for GoFundMe told CNN the campaign has been verified as supporting the Pretti family.
Catch up here: White House border czar arriving in Minneapolis soon amid deadly shooting fallout
Top Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino is on his way out of Minneapolis, as White House border czar Tom Homan is set to arrive very soon.
The changes come as tensions flare on the ground and the Trump administration tries to contain the backlash over the fatal Border Patrol shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti, a US citizen, over the weekend.
Here’s the latest:
- Top official out of city: Bovino and some of his agents are expected to leave Minneapolis tomorrow and return to their respective sectors, according to three sources familiar with the discussions. However, he is not leaving his position, DHS said. President Donald Trump is dispatching Homan to manage ICE operations in the city after Saturday’s fatal Border Patrol shooting. DHS has suspended Bovino’s access to his social media accounts, a source familiar with the matter said.
- Reaction: Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said he hopes Bovino’s departure signals de-escalation in the city, adding that some of the CBP official’s actions have “not been helpful.” Replacing Bovino with a new point person in Minneapolis could signal new willingness from the Trump administration to cooperate with the state’s Democratic-elected officials. But, top federal officials are still trying to shift blame.
- Meetings with state and local officials: Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said he spoke to Trump this afternoon. The mayor said the president “agreed that the present situation cannot continue.” Frey said he plans to meet with Homan tomorrow. Earlier today, Trump said he had a “productive” call with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
- Court cases: A federal appeals court today refused to reinstate a judge’s order that sought to put guardrails on how federal agents can operate around peaceful protesters in Minnesota. Separately, in a two-hour hearing, a judge in another federal courtroom did not make an immediate decision on whether to order the Trump administration to suspend Operation Metro Surge, which targets undocumented immigrants in Minnesota. New filings as part of legal challenges revealed more about the investigation into Pretti’s death, including what happened after the shooting.
- In Congress: Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem will testify before Senate Judiciary Committee on March 3, according to Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin. Meantime, a DHS funding bill is subject of debate in Congress right now and includes newly negotiated accountability measures for ICE and Customs and Border Protection.
CNN’s Shimon Prockupecz, Matt Friedman, Aditi Sangal, Priscilla Alvarez, Michael Williams, Morgan Rimmer, Adam Cancryn, Kristen Holmes, Katelyn Polantz, Maureen Chowdhury, Devan Cole and Andy Rose contributed reporting to this post.
Minnesota attorney general says he's happy to see Bovino go, but maintains zero trust in DHS
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said he’s happy with the news that top Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino will be leaving Minneapolis, but he still maintains “zero trust” that the Department of Homeland Security will “do the right thing” in the investigation into Alex Pretti’s death.
“There’s no way I can trust anything that they say or do, including preserve evidence,” Ellison told CNN’s Anderson Cooper. “Why would they preserve evidence of a crime … in a case where they’re denying that there was any crime committed by these officers at all? I just don’t believe it.”
Ellison’s comments follow a federal judge’s Saturday ruling in Minnesota granting a temporary restraining order that blocks federal agencies from destroying or altering evidence related to the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Pretti.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office requested the order after suing the Trump administration earlier Saturday.
“I don’t trust them at all, and I hope the court rules in our favor to protect this evidence,” Ellison said.
A Monday afternoon hearing ended without a decision from the judge on whether to keep the TRO in place, though he said he would rule “forthwith.”
CORRECTION: A previous version of this post misstated the day the judge granted the temporary restraining order. It was Saturday.
Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith questions credibility of federal investigation into Alex Pretti's death
Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith, one of the Democrats who said she will block a government spending bill following the killing of Alex Pretti by a federal agent, cast doubt on the ability of the Department of Homeland Security to fairly investigate the death of the 37-year-old ICU nurse and pushed for more cooperation between state and local officials.
Pointing to how Minnesota’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension was prevented from accessing the scene of Pretti’s shooting to collect evidence in its own investigation, Smith said it was unusual because state and federal investigators typically collaborate “to gather the evidence and understand what’s happening” in probing officer-involved shootings.
“And it’s one of the reasons why people in Minnesota and I think around the country are just saying, this looks like a cover up. How could you have any credibility when you have the department investigating itself?” she told CNN’s Anderson Cooper.
Smith’s comments come hours after Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said today that President Donald Trump had agreed to allow the state’s investigation to continue. The BCA was granted an order from a federal judge over the weekend prohibiting DHS from destroying or altering any evidence gathered around the shooting.
Alex Pretti's colleague says he was a compassionate nurse caring for veteran patients
Dr. Aasma Shaukat, a co-worker and mentor of Alex Pretti at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, said the 37-year-old ICU nurse was full of empathy and compassion and easily connected with the veteran patients he cared for at work.
“He really connected with patients, particularly veterans, that he thought were a vulnerable group, and he truly believed he was helping them. Not everybody can do that as easily as Alex,” Shaukat told CNN’s Erin Burnett.
Shaukat, who worked alongside Pretti for six years, said she wasn’t surprised to learn that he was engaged in peaceful protests in the community.
“He was all about being a good citizen, standing up for your neighbors, your community, and standing up for what he believed was unjust or unfair,” she said. “That would be very much Alex.”
Bovino's actions have "not been helpful," says Minneapolis police chief
After news broke that top Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino will be leaving Minneapolis, the city’s police chief told CNN some of Bovino’s actions have “not been helpful.”
“He was riding around in the city with a caravan and stopping at places and kind of just shaking things up — that’s not been helpful,” Minneapolis police chief Brian O’Hara said.
The chief said he hopes Bovino’s departure signals deescalation of the tense situation in Minneapolis.
“Nobody in law enforcement is saying federal law enforcement should not be enforcing federal law. That’s ridiculous, right?” he said. “But I don’t think it’s unreasonable to think that federal law enforcement should operate by the same standards and professionalism that the rest of law enforcement in the state does.”
GOP candidate for Minnesota governor says "retribution" against his state led to him dropping out of the race
Chris Madel was rising quickly in the polls as a GOP candidate in Minnesota’s governor’s race. But now he’s no longer running because he said he cannot be part of the Republican “retribution” going on in his state.
“The president posted something on Truth Social saying that it was a time of reckoning and retribution on the citizens of my state, and I’ve seen that happen, and I cannot be a part of it — and I can’t be a part of a party that’s a part of that,” he told CNN’s Erin Burnett.
He initially supported the immigration crackdown and “the idea of getting rid of the worst of the worst,” he said, but several law enforcement officers told him they got pulled over by federal agents because of the color of their skin.
With tensions rising, Madel said, it has “just gotten to a point where it’s just so incredibly out of hand.” In the end, he said, he wants to lead by example for his daughters, and show them you have to stand up for things that aren’t right.
“We need to treat everybody with a measure of humanity, and that’s what it really means to be an American. That’s what we are. We are a nation of immigrants,” he said.
The idea of people walking around with their papers or photos of their passports because they are scared of being swept up by federal agents is “antithetical to everything our country is about,” Madel said.
Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino has not been relieved of his duties, DHS says
The Department of Homeland Security has underscored that Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino, who became the face of President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota, has not been removed from his duties.
“Chief Gregory Bovino has NOT been relieved of his duties,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a post on X today.
Bovino “is a key part of the President’s team and a great American,” she added.
Some background: Bovino and some of his agents are expected to leave Minneapolis tomorrow and return to their respective sectors, according to three sources familiar with the discussions. Trump is dispatching White House border czar Tom Homan to manage Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in Minneapolis in the wake of Saturday’s fatal Border Patrol shooting of a US citizen. This change will not result in Bovino’s removal from his duties, the administration has clarified.
DHS suspends Bovino's access to his social media accounts, source says
The Department of Homeland Security has suspended border patrol official Gregory Bovino’s access to his social media accounts effective immediately, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Bovino would use one X account, @CMDROpAtLargeCA, to post multiple times a day, trolling his critics, sharing mugshots of immigrants his officers arrested, and publicizing his own appearances at press conferences and on cable news.
Over the weekend, Bovino had scrapped with lawmakers and others online, responding to their posts on X about the shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti. In several recent posts to social media, Bovino had accused Pretti of assaulting federal law enforcement officers before he was killed — a claim that is not supported by video of the moments leading up to his death.
Bovino is expected to depart Minneapolis tomorrow, and President Donald Trump said he is sending border czar Tom Homan to lead the operation there.
