Daijiworld Media Network - Minneapolis
Minneapolis, Jan 25: Family members of patients and friends have remembered Alex Pretti, a registered nurse at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, as a compassionate and genuine individual, following his death in a shooting involving a US Border Patrol agent last month.
Ray Trebus Sr., a Vietnam War veteran battling metastatic prostate cancer, came under Pretti’s care after being admitted to the Minneapolis VA Medical Center on December 8, 2023. Pretti served as his nurse for a week when Trebus was shifted to the Intensive Care Unit. Trebus passed away on January 6, 2024.
“He was patient. He answered all of our questions. He was a genuine person, and it was obvious that he truly cared about what we were going through,” Trebus’ daughter, Jean Trebus, said.
Pretti died on January 24 after being fatally shot by a US Border Patrol agent on a cold but sunny Saturday morning in Minneapolis. The incident occurred when he confronted federal agents during an immigration enforcement operation under the Trump administration. Federal authorities alleged Pretti was carrying a firearm with the intent to harm law enforcement personnel.
However, videos recorded by bystanders and a witness account cited in court filings reportedly do not show him brandishing a weapon as he approached the agents.
Raised in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Pretti was actively involved in cultural and artistic pursuits from a young age. He sang with the Green Bay Boy Choir and later acted with the Preble Players Theatre at Green Bay Preble High School. He graduated from the school in 2006.
A former classmate, Chris DiSalvi, recalled Pretti as a friendly and easygoing person. “I never had a bad interaction with him,” DiSalvi said, adding that they simply went in different directions as life progressed.
Pretti later graduated from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities in 2011 with a bachelor’s degree in biology, society and the environment, according to the Associated Press. He went on to pursue nursing and became a registered nurse, eventually working with the VA.
Friends also described him as kind-hearted and intelligent. “He was just a good person,” said Heather Zielinski, who knew Pretti during his college years. “He liked food, music, and helping people. He was doing medical research with the VA at the time.”
Jean Trebus said that on one occasion, while leaving the hospital late at night, she asked Pretti for a contact number to check on her father. He handed her a business card with the unit’s phone numbers.
“I still carry that card on the back of my phone,” she said, reflecting on the nurse who left a lasting impression during one of the most difficult phases of her family’s life.