A picture sits at a memorial to Alex Pretti on Jan. 25, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The FBI formally notified Minnesota officials on Friday that it would not grant them access to evidence from the investigation into the killing of Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis, the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said on Monday.

The BCA has historically investigated shootings by law enforcement officials but has been blocked from participating in the investigations of federal immigration agents killing two Americans and shooting a Venezuelan national in three separate incidents in Minneapolis in January during “Operation Metro Surge.”

“While this lack of cooperation is concerning and unprecedented, the BCA is committed to thorough, independent and transparent investigations of these incidents, even if hampered by a lack of access to key information and evidence,” BCA Superintendent Drew Evans said in a statement.

When U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jonathan Ross shot and killed Renee Good in her car on Jan. 7, BCA agents were on the scene collecting evidence as part of a joint investigation with the FBI. Then the U.S. Attorney’s Office “reversed course” and decided the investigation would be led solely by the FBI, Evans said at the time.

A week later, an ICE agent shot Julio Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan national, in the leg after a car chase with a different individual, whom agents had confused for someone else. The BCA were again on the scene then in north Minneapolis and collected evidence but the FBI told the BCA it would not share any results of its initial investigation.

A little over a week after that, a U.S. Border Patrol agent and a Customs and Border Protection officer shot and killed Alex Pretti on Jan. 24 as he was observing federal immigration agents in south Minneapolis. BCA agents responded at the request of the city of Minneapolis but were blocked from accessing the scene by personnel with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security despite having a judicial warrant.

In all three incidents, Department of Homeland Security officials made extraordinary statements about the victims. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem described Good and Pretti as domestic terrorists within hours of their killings.

Homeland Security, in an official release, initially said Sosa-Celis and another man, Alfredo Aljorna, violently assaulted an officer leading the agent to fire a defensive shot. The Department of Justice has since dropped felony assault charges against the two men and is instead investigating two ICE officers for lying about the incident.

Public outrage over the Pretti killing appeared to pressure the Trump administration to consider allowing state officials to cooperate on the investigation. The Star Tribune reported that the BCA and FBI were close to announcing a deal on a joint investigation. Then the Trump administration pulled back, apparently because of a leak about the deal, Gov. Tim Walz said on Thursday.

Democratic leaders say the lack of local participation on independent investigations into the shootings compromises public trust.

In the Pretti killing, the Department of Homeland Security initially said it would take the lead on the investigation — essentially investigating itself — before the FBI took over. The U.S. Department of Justice has opened a civil rights investigation into the killing.

The lack of cooperation with the state also hinders local prosecutors in weighing whether criminal charges against the agents are warranted, leading Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison to begin collecting evidence themselves with the BCA.

The BCA is requesting anyone with information about the shootings of Pretti, Good or Sosa-Celis to contact them at 651-793-7000 or by email at bca.tips@state.mn.us.