Killing of man in Minneapolis by federal agent fuels Seattle protests

Caitlyn Freeman, The Seattle Times on Jan 25, 2026

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Hundreds gathered Saturday in Seattle to protest the killing of a 37-year-old man in Minneapolis by a federal immigration agent and send a message of resistance to the Trump administration.

“They think that they can exhaust us,” Jonathan Toledo, a member of Seattle Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, told a large crowd outside the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building. "They think that they’ll tire us, but what they don't know is that the will of the people does not stop.”

SAARPR, Defund Musk and other community organizations held a vigil for Alex Pretti, an intensive care unit nurse who was shot and killed by a federal immigration agent during the Minneapolis protests Saturday. The shooting comes weeks after Renee Good was killed by ICE agent Jonathan Ross, also in Minneapolis.

Protesters in Seattle held a moment of silence, placed flowers and lit tea lights around pictures of Pretti on a brick bench attached to the federal building.

Deborah Nelson, 71, of Seattle, said she came to the demonstration because she was shocked by Pretti’s death.

“(President Donald) Trump and his thugs must be stopped,” Nelson said, tearfully. “Groups like ours are going to fight until we make the U.S. a democracy again.”

Protesters marched on Second Avenue to Cherry Street, Fourth Avenue, Union Street and back to the federal building, chanting “Say it once, say it twice, Seattle doesn't (expletive) with ICE.” A Seattle Police Department patrol car drove next to the march for part of the way.

Earlier on Saturday, hundreds gathered in Seattle's Hiawatha Playfield for a planned protest that quickly pivoted to focus on Pretti's killing.

Amy Daly-Donovan, 64, of Seattle, a volunteer coordinator for West Seattle Indivisible, said while the Hiawatha Playfield protest was initially aimed to mark the anniversary of the second Trump administration, she said Saturday’s death took priority.

“(The death in Minneapolis is) what fuels us to be here today,” Daly-Donovan said.

Emma Bergson, 29, who is from Minnesota but now lives in Seattle, wasn’t planning to protest Saturday. But Pretti's killing motivated her to come out to the West Seattle march.

“I just felt like I needed to go be with other people who were angry and upset,” she said

Marchers left the West Seattle High School parking lot near the park and took to California Avenue Northwest.

“Say it loud, say it clear. Immigrants are welcomed here,” they chanted.

Eric Anderson, 74, of Seattle, marched Saturday and said he’s made an effort to attend most anti-ICE rallies. He called the death in Minneapolis disgusting and said as a dual Swedish citizen, it makes him not want to identify as American.

“I feel like the ICE brigade is state-sponsored terrorism,” he said. “Everybody's afraid. And these are not well-trained people. Now they seem to have a grudge to start with.”

Before the evening demonstration, protesters gathered at the federal building around 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon.

“Justice for Alex Pretti,” a sign read.

Tricia McLaughlin, spokesperson with the Department of Homeland Security, said the agent fired "defensive shots" after a man with a handgun "violently resisted" officers. In bystander videos, Pretti can be seen with a phone in his hand, but none show him carrying a visible weapon, The Associated Press reported.

U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal posted multiple times on X, calling on Republicans to stand up to President Donald Trump and calling on federal agents to leave Minneapolis.

"Federal agents killed a man in Minnesota today," Jayapal wrote on X. "And DHS is already lying about it. It is time to get these masked, militarized agents off our streets — and Congress cannot give another dime to DHS."

Sen. Patty Murray said the killing of Pretti appeared to be "an execution" and called for agents to be investigated.

"Joining ICE does not give you license to murder," Murray wrote on X. "The President is escalating the situation—and I have no faith he will stop. The Republican Congress must join us to end this. Enough."

U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell also called for an investigation into the shooting.

“President Trump has crossed the line," she wrote in an emailed statement. Americans will not stand for masked, armed troops roaming their neighborhoods. ICE is not trained in this capacity and should not be on streets. This incident should be investigated immediately and not politicized by the President.”

Kate Anderson, 44, came from Snohomish County to protest at the federal building Saturday evening. Like Murray, she called Pretti’s death an execution. While holding a tea light candle, Anderson pleaded for her fellow citizens to show up for one another.

“We have to stand up for other people,” she said. “We can't keep saying somebody do something. We are the somebody.”

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