A former US Air Force officer has defended the man shot dead by federal immigration officers in Minneapolis, saying carrying a gun does not make someone a criminal.
Adam Kinzinger, an American politician and former Air Force and Air National Guard officer, criticised attempts to justify the shooting because the man was armed.
In a video message on X, he said: "So let's do an update for the ICE shooting. I'm seeing a lot of comments by people on the right trying to justify this, saying the guy was armed. So let's just take that where it is. First off, I want to point out there is a lot of video that shows that an agent actually took the guy's gun from him and disarmed him prior to nine shots being fired point blank into his body and killing him. If the video is telling us the truth, then you cannot shoot a guy once he's been disarmed."
He added that every state in the US legally allows one to carry a gun above the age of 21 years: "Every state in the union has a concealed carry provision. Every state in the union allows you to carry a gun. So his mere possession of a gun does not make him a criminal nor give your right to shoot him at all."
City officials confirmed that the man, 37-year-old Alex Pretti, a white Minneapolis resident, was a US citizen.
Greg Bovino, a Border Patrol commander, said officers tried to "disarm" the individual, who "violently resisted".
The incident follows the recent death of Renee Good, an American woman shot by an immigration officer in Minneapolis earlier this month in "self-defence."
US President Donald Trump weighed in on the shooting, accusing Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey and Minnesota governor Tim Walz of encouraging an "insurrection". Walz said he had spoken to the White House and insisted that the state would investigate the incident. He also demanded that ICE leave Minnesota immediately.
After the shooting, demonstrators gathered in Minneapolis, clashing with law enforcement in some areas.
Kinzinger also said that officers would only be justified in using lethal force if the gun had been drawn and pointed at them. "So when you hear people say, well look they found the gun on him, that does not give them right to shoot," he said. The former officer also claimed that ICE is creating problems in Minnesota, but he did not elaborate further.
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