In a brazen move, Border Patrol Chief twists the demand for justice into ‘doxing’ accusations to defend the killer of Alex Pretti
And the next day, he’s gone.
In the wake of the Jan. 24, 2026 killing of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti by U.S. Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis, federal officials have been scrambling to control the narrative. Even now, the Border Patrol Chief, Bovino, refuses to expose the monsters who did it.
On Jan. 25 and 26, Border Patrol commander-at-large Gregory Bovino held press appearances defending the agents involved in Pretti’s murder. At one point, he even publicly praised them as “the true victims.” But that framing is sharply at odds with bystander videos. Footage from multiple angles show Pretti was disarmed and was holding only a phone moments before the shooting. If anything, he was only stopping the agents from assaulting a woman protester.
But Bovino’s rhetoric in his agents’ favor kept escalating. During a press conference addressing questions about the shooting, Bovino was asked about the agents’ current status:
We know one of the agents had eight years experience. And we know he was a less lethal instructor and had this training. What about the other agent, what was his history? And are they both working right now, or are they on administrative leave?
Instead of providing clarity, Bovino’s answer veered into something else entirely. He said all agents involved were still working, just not in Minneapolis, and that revealing identities would risk “doxing” them:
All agents that were involved in that scene are working, not in Minneapolis, but in other locations. That’s for their safety. There’s this thing called doxing, and the safety of our employees is very important to us. We’re gonna keep those employees safe.
Holding agents accountable is ‘doxing’ for Bovino
FYI, “doxing” refers to publishing personal identifying information online to pose safety risks to an individual. But Bovino’s invocation of the term was not about safeguarding privacy in a neutral context. It was about protecting federal agents from public accountability.
In typical law enforcement practice, officers involved in a fatal shooting are placed on administrative leave pending investigation. It’s a measure designed to protect both the integrity of the inquiry and public trust. Yet, Bovino’s comments suggested not a temporary removal for review, but a tactical relocation under the guise of privacy protection.
Bovino’s comment quickly led to howls of outrage online. Users argued that the border and immigration agents are increasingly operating with military rhetoric, aggressive tactics, and minimal transparency. One user put it bluntly, writing, “We now have secret police in America, folks.” The implication is not metaphorical, it is a reaction to federal agents being shielded from public scrutiny by administrative twists.
There is also a legal and investigatory backdrop at play. The Pretti shooting is being investigated primarily by Homeland Security Investigations rather than the FBI and Department of Justice. This choice has raised bipartisan concern about impartiality, especially since Minnesota state investigators were reportedly denied immediate access to the scene.
In good news, Bovino was removed from his Minneapolis commander-at-large post entirely amid the scandal by the next day. His social media privileges are suspended, and he is reassigned back to his old post in California (via The Atlantic). Although, DHS has not described this as discipline, that sequence matters politically. Bovino refused to treat accountability as a priority, and he was held accountable for exactly that.
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