‘So It’s Possible it Was a Bad Shooting?’ Border Patrol Honcho Greg Bovino Peppered With Questions in Fiery Presser

‘So It’s Possible it Was a Bad Shooting?’ Border Patrol Honcho Greg Bovino Peppered With Questions in Fiery Presser

Sean James

Sun, January 25, 2026 at 8:54 PM UTC

3 min read

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Border Patrol Commander-at-large Greg Bovino held a press conference on Sunday afternoon that quickly turned fiery when reporters started hitting him with several questions about the shooting death of Alex Pretti that happened a day earlier in Minneapolis.

Bovino told the reporters Pretti “assaulted” Border Patrol officers before he was shot and killed, and he also mentioned several times that the “choices” he made increased the odds of a fatal confrontation happening. Both of those claims riled up some of the reporters and led to a few heated exchanges.

One of those exchanges started when a female reporter asked Bovino “Was Alex Pretti armed when he was shot?”

Bovino declined to answer, saying “all those facts” will come out in the investigation that is taking place. “I’m not going to speculate,” Bovino said.

He then said Pretti was an “assaultive subject” who was “assaulting” officers and interfering with an operation to arrest a violent illegal immigrant. That comment irked the reporter, who took issue with Bovino saying Pretti committed assault.

“Don’t interrupt me,” Bovino told her.

The reporter asked a follow up right after, “If there’s an investigation going on and you have not concluded, isn’t it possible this was a bad shooting? Or have you already concluded for yourself that this was justified?”

“I have not concluded anything, I have not given you a conclusion,” Bovino said.

“So it’s possible it was a bad shooting?” The same reporter asked.

“What I do know is that this individual was on that scene several minutes before that shooting interfering with a lawful ,legal, ethical law enforcement operation,” Bovino replied. “Back to choices — when someone makes the choice to come into an active law enforcement scene, interfere, obstruct, delay, or assault law enforcement officers—”

That comment upset the reporter, who shouted back at Bovino: “He didn’t assault law enforcement!”

Bovino continued with his answer, “and they bring a weapon to do that, that is a choice that that individual made.”

That back-and-forth was followed a few minutes later by a male reporter who pointed to the Renee Good shooting earlier in the month. The reporter asked if Bovino or anyone at ICE was going to take “any accountability for those actions?”

Bovino answered by saying it all “goes back to the choices” people make. When “individuals make poor choices” and interfere with a law enforcement operation while armed with a 9 mm gun it leads to terrible outcomes, Bovino said.

The shooting was a “tragedy that was preventable by folks making better choices,” Bovino said at the top of his press conference. His comments on Sunday come a day after Bovino said Pretti was looking to “massacre” immigration agents.

Bovino added later on Sunday he would “Implore upon any individuals — whether they’re anarchists, rioters, or anyone else that thinks its wise to go into a law enforcement scene to disrupt, to delay — don’t do that.”

Watch above via CNN.

The post ‘So It’s Possible it Was a Bad Shooting?’ Border Patrol Honcho Greg Bovino Peppered With Questions in Fiery Presser first appeared on Mediaite.

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