FILE — U.S. Border Patrol Commander at Large Greg Bovino walks alongside federal agents outside the Whipple Federal Building near Fort Snelling. (KSTP/file)
By Kyle Brown
Border Patrol Commander at Large Greg Bovino’s departure from Minnesota is imminent, according to reports from ABC News and the Associated Press.
Some Border Patrol agents currently stationed in Minneapolis are expected to leave as well.
Over the past few weeks, Bovino became the face of Operation Metro Surge, placing himself at the podium and in the thick of volatile demonstrations outside the Whipple Federal Building and throughout Minneapolis.
This past weekend, Bovino inflamed a community that was already on edge by saying, without evidence, that Alex Pretti — the 37-year-old intensive care nurse who was shot and killed by Border Patrol on Saturday in Minneapolis — intended to do “maximum damage” to agents in the course of immigration enforcement operations.
A handgun and a second magazine were found in Pretti’s possession, though no publicly released video has shown him reaching for a weapon as agents pepper-sprayed him and wrestled him to the ground. Some angles even appear to show an agent disarming Pretti before any shots are fired.
According to Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara and family members, Pretti had no criminal record and had a lawful permit to carry.
