Amid the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis on Thursday, many unverified claims are circulating about the 37-year-old nurse. Some of the claims continue to be shared on social media despite no evidence to back them.
One such viral claim is Alex Pretti's purported relationship with Drake Maye, the New England Patriots quarterback. Several posts were made on the links on social media platforms, especially Facebook, and received hundreds of reactions. Some posts also claimed that Maye has criticized the ICE over the death of Alex Pretti.
However, the claims are baseless and bizarre, to say the least. As of now, there is no known relation between Alex Pretti and Drake Maye. Additionally, Maye has not made any public comments on the death of Alex Pretti.
Here's a viral post about the links:
The misleading posts were likely made viral in the backdrop of the NFL AFC Championship game between the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots, where Maye featured heavily.
Protests Continue Amid Second ICE Shooting Death
The death of Alex Pretti was the second ICE-involved shooting death is Minneapolis amid the ongoing operation in Minnesota cities against illegal Somali immigrants. Earlier this month, on January 7, Renee Nicole Good was fatally shot by ICE agent Jonathan Ross.
After Pretti's death, a fresh wave of anti-ICE protests erupted in Minneapolis. Photos and videos showed that a memorial for Pretti has been set up at the site of the shooting, where thousands gathered on Sunday.
Also read: Kyle Rittenhouse's posts on Alex Pretti shooting, protests spark outrage; ‘come to Minneapolis’
{{/usCountry}}Also read: Kyle Rittenhouse's posts on Alex Pretti shooting, protests spark outrage; ‘come to Minneapolis’
{{/usCountry}}The protests come as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Trump administration maintains that Pretti brandished a gun at the ICE agent, which "justified the shooting." However, eyewitness videos have contradicted the claims as Pretti could be seen in them holding his mobile phone only. Though he had a licensed firearm on him, he did not pull it on the agent.
On Sunday, the family of Pretti also hit out at the narratives being spread about the 37-year-old ICE nurse. The family said: "The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump's murdering and cowardly ICE thugs."