Trump to send border czar Tom Homan to Minneapolis as admin faces outrage over Pretti shooting
White House Border Czar Tom Homan speaks to reporters outside the West Wing of the White House on January 14, 2026 in Washington, DC. Alex Wong/Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump announced Monday that he is dispatching his border czar, Tom Homan, to Minnesota amid outrage over the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by a federal agent.
“I am sending Tom Homan to Minnesota tonight. He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there. Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me,” Trump wrote in a social media post.
Trump, in another social media post, wrote Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, called him to “request to work together with respect to Minnesota. It was a very good call, and we, actually, seemed to be on a similar wavelength.”
Trump said that he would have Homan call Walz and that Walz was “happy” that Homan was going to Minnesota.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who will hold a press briefing on Monday afternoon, said Homan “will be managing ICE Operations on the ground in Minnesota to continue arresting the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens.”
The development comes after Trump, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal on Sunday, notably declined to say whether he thought the agent who killed Pretti acted appropriately.
“We’re looking, we’re reviewing everything and will come out with a determination,” Trump told the WSJ.
By putting Homan in charge of ICE operations in Minneapolis, Trump is bypassing the normal chain of command — where Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino have been overseeing ICE operations. Trump said Homan would be reporting directly to him.
Trump’s less definitive comments on the shooting were in sharp contrast with those of Noem, Bovino and FBI Director Kash Patel, who have defended the agents’ actions.
Trump administration officials said Pretti “brandished” a gun and multiple magazines with the intent to inflict harm on officers — a “massacre” Bovino claimed. Noem and others have labeled Pretti a “domestic terrorist” without citing any evidence.
State and local officials said Pretti was lawfully carrying a gun, with a concealed carry permit, and video reviewed and verified by ABC News does not appear to show that Pretti drew his gun on the agents and was holding up a cell phone — not a gun — to record agents during the incident.
Trump, like Noem, Bovino and Patel, criticized Pretti for carrying a weapon at a protest.
“I don’t like any shooting. I don’t like it,” Trump told the WSJ. “But I don’t like it when somebody goes into a protest and he’s got a very powerful, fully loaded gun with two magazines loaded up with bullets also. That doesn’t play good either.”
The administration is facing criticism from both Democrats and some Republicans for blaming the victim of the shooting, with some Republican lawmakers calling for an independent investigation into what happened. Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy said the credibility of ICE and DHS was “at stake” and there “must be a full joint federal and state investigation.” Moderate Democratic Sen. Jackie Rosen has called for Noem’s impeachment. ABC News has reached out to DHS and the White House for comment on impeachment calls against Noem.
The National Rifle Association issued a rare statement saying “responsible public voices should be awaiting a full investigation, not making generalizations and demonizing law-abiding citizens.”
Noem, responding to Trump’s announcement that Homan will soon be in Minnesota, said it was “good news for peace, safety, and accountability in Minneapolis.”
“I have worked closely with Tom over the last year and he has been a major asset to our team — his experience and insight will help us in our wide-scale fraud investigations, which have robbed Americans, and will help us to remove even more public safety threats and violent criminal illegal aliens off the of streets of Minneapolis. We continue to call on the leadership in Minnesota to allow for state and local partnership in our public safety mission,” Noem posted on X.
Noem will “continue to lead the Department of Homeland Security with the full trust and confidence of the President,” according to a White House official.
“Tom Homan is uniquely positioned to drop everything and focus solely on Minnesota to solve the problems that have been created by a lack of cooperation from state and local officials,” the White House official added.
Trump, in his interview with the WSJ, also notably suggested the possibility of pulling federal agents out of Minnesota.
“At some point we will leave,” Trump said, though he didn’t provide a specific timeline. “We’ve done, they’ve done a phenomenal job.”
Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro appears on Good Morning America, Jan. 26, 2026. ABC News
(NEW YORK) — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro on Monday called for the Trump administration to terminate its immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis, following the killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents.
“A fundamental responsibility for government is to keep people safe, and part of the way you keep people safe is by building trust between law enforcement and the community,” Shapiro said in an interview on “Good Morning America.”
“What Donald Trump and the federal government are doing is eroding that trust, is making people less safe, and it is time to terminate this mission,” he said.
The Pennsylvania Democrat called for an independent investigation into the killings of Pretti and Rene Good to be led by the state of Minnesota.
Some Republicans have called for a thorough investigation of Pretti’s killing, after videos of his killing raised questions about Trump administration officials’ initial characterizations of the incident.
“This mission in Minnesota is compromised. It’s been directed by Donald Trump and [Vice President] JD Vance and [Homeland Security Secretary] Kristi Noem in a way to wreak havoc on a community, in a way that is very clearly violating people’s constitutional rights each and every day, and has led to two tragic killings in the streets of people who were not a threat, I believe, to law enforcement,” Shapiro said.
Americans cannot bring a loaded firearm to protests, according to FBI Director Kash Patel.
“You cannot bring a firearm loaded with multiple magazines to any sort of protest that you want,” the FBI Director said after being asked by Fox host Maria Bartiromo about his message to those who are outraged about the shooting. “It’s that simple. You don’t have that right to break the law and incite violence.”
Asked if he endorses calls by a growing number of Democrats to refuse to fund the Department of Homeland Security this week — and risk a partial government shutdown — Shapiro endorsed the position of Nevada Democratic Sen. Katherine Cortez Masto, who called for the Senate to fund the rest of the government while pushing for changes to DHS in the wake of the shootings in Minneapolis.
Noem has defended the agents’ actions in Minneapolis.
“This individual went and impeded their law enforcement operations, attacked those officers, had a weapon on him and multiple, dozens of rounds of ammunition, wishing to inflict harm on these officers, coming, brandishing like that, and impeding their work that they were doing,” Noem said this weekend.
Border Patrol Cmdr. Greg Bovino also defended the actions of agents amid the protests.
“I believe the fantastic training that our law enforcement partners have, the fact that they’re highly trained, prevented any specific shootings of law enforcement,” Bovino told CNN this weekend. “So good job for our law enforcement in taking him down before he was able to do that.”
“The challenge here … is the direction that these federal agents are receiving, the direction that’s coming all the way from the top, from Trump and Vance and Noem, that is compromised,” Shapiro said on Monday. “I would not continue funding this and giving the president a blank check to wreak havoc and undermine people’s constitutional rights.”
In his memoir out Tuesday, “Where We Keep the Light: Stories from a Life of Service,” Shapiro reflects on his life in public office and grapples with the 2025 arson attack on his home.
“One of the core principles you enunciate in your book is that we have more that unites us than divides us. You see what’s happening in Minneapolis. You see what’s happening in the streets of our country. And does it challenge your thesis?” ABC’s George Stephanopoulos asked Shapiro on Monday.
“I would hope that even in these serious moments, even in these moments where I know we are consumed by this darkness, particularly coming out of Minneapolis right now, let’s not forget that there are people in the world doing good, bringing light each day,” Shapiro said.
Shapiro said politicians need to “speak and act with moral clarity.”
“Part of the point of my book is to encourage more politicians, particularly those who enable this president on a daily basis, to take their cues, not from the division that exists, you know, in our society, and sort of pushed even more so by social media, but instead, take their cues from good people who are doing good things in our communities each and every day, and that’s where I find the light,” he said.
Alex Pretti is confronted by federal agents prior to being fatally shot in Minneapolis, Jan. 24, 2026. (Obtained by ABC News)
(WASHINGTON) — White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller told ABC News that officials are “evaluating” why Customs and Border Protection agents in Minneapolis “may not have been following” protocol in the events that led to the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis on Saturday.
The comments appear to be a shift from Miller, who hours after the shooting, called Pretti, an ICU nurse for the Department of Veteran Affairs, a “domestic terrorist” and “a would-be assassin” without providing evidence. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called Pretti’s conduct “the definition of domestic terrorism” — also without evidence — which sparked backlash.
Miller’s comments come as the Trump administration grapples with the fallout of Pretti’s shooting — as well as the death of Renee Good, a mother of three, who was shot and killed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Jan. 7.
“The initial statement from DHS was based on reports from CBP on the ground,” Miller said in a statement.
“Additionally, the White House provided clear guidance to DHS that the extra personnel that had been sent to Minnesota for force protection should be used for conducting fugitive operations to create a physical barrier between the arrest teams and the disruptors. We are evaluating why the CBP team may not have been following that protocol,” Miller told ABC News.
The administration has sought to create some distance from Miller and Noem’s earlier characterization of the shooting.
Earlier this week, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, walked back the comments that Pretti was a “domestic terrorist.”
“I don’t think anybody thinks that they were comparing what happened on Saturday to the legal definition of domestic terrorism,” Blanche said on Fox News.
Asked by ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce if the president agreed with the characterization of Pretti as a “domestic terrorist,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt distanced the president from those comments.
“Look, as I’ve said, I have not heard the president characterize Mr. Pretti in that way,” Leavitt said during the White House press briefing on Monday. “However, I have heard the president say he wants to let the facts in the investigation lead itself.”
DHS did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
Richard Kahn, an accountant for convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, arrives for a House Oversight Committee deposition about Epstein, in Rayburn building on Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — In his opening statement to the House Oversight Committee, Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime attorney Darren Indyke claimed that he had “no knowledge whatsoever” of the late financier’s crimes and categorically denied facilitating the sex trafficking of women.
“I’m left trying to explain what many people who knew Jeffrey Epstein have noted after his death: he led two entirely separate lives, his professional one and the other, a private, personal one that caused many others to suffer,” Indyke said on Thursday, according to his prepared remarks obtained by ABC News. “That I did not know what my client did in his private life may be difficult for some to believe, but it is true.”
Indyke addressed some of the allegations levied against him in civil lawsuits filed after Epstein’s death, including that he withdrew hundreds of thousands in cash for Epstein and coordinated sham marriages to keep victims in the United States.
According to Indyke, he never tried to “structure” cash withdrawals to avoid triggering an alert to the Treasury Department. He seemingly acknowledged that he did withdraw thousands for Epstein, arguing that the sex offender required large amounts of cash because he had trouble obtaining credit cards from major banks.
“For a person in Mr. Epstein’s financial position – with five multimillion-dollar residences staffed by dozens of employees and with an extensive travel itinerary – it did not strike me as unusual that Mr. Epstein’s business, household and personal needs required large amounts of cash on a regular basis,” he said. “I never believed that cash that I withdrew for Mr. Epstein and his staff was used by Mr. Epstein or his staff for any improper purposes.”
Indyke also said he never did “arrange, assist or facilitate any marriages between acquaintances of Mr. Epstein.” Multiple now-settled lawsuits alleged that he assisted with at least three marriages to keep Epstein’s victims in the United States.
“I did not consider it appropriate to interrogate anyone as to the reasons for their decisions to marry or the bona fides of their relationships,” Indyke said in his remarks.
Indyke claimed that he would have quit working for Epstein had he known about his abuse and trafficking of women and girls. According to Indyke, Epstein vowed to never commit another crime after his 2008 guilty plea.
“After he pled guilty in 2008 to procuring a person under the age of 18 for prostitution, Mr. Epstein appeared to me to be devastated and extremely contrite,” Indyke said. “He was adamant that he had no idea anyone involved was underage, and personally assured me he would never again let himself be in that position. I believed him, and I made the mistake of believing Mr. Epstein that he would not again commit a crime. I deeply regret doing so. Most importantly, I feel horrible for those women whom Mr. Epstein abused.”
Indyke served as Epstein’s longtime attorney since the mid-1990s.
As Epstein for years attempted to avoid scrutiny while orchestrating a notorious sex trafficking operation, Indyke — together with accountant Richard Kahn — allegedly helped him navigate legal issues and formed part of the financier’s inner circle. Indyke allegedly helped facilitate at least three sham marriages between Epstein’s victims and withdrew hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash for Epstein, according to one lawsuit, and attested to Epstein’s character when he faced legal scrutiny.
“Knowing that they would earn millions of dollars in exchange for facilitating Epstein’s sex abuse and trafficking, Indyke and Kahn chose money and power over following the law,” alleged one lawsuit that Indyke and Kahn agreed to settle with no admission of wrongdoing.
Neither man has been charged with any crimes. They both deny any wrongdoing and say they were unaware of Epstein’s crimes while working for him.
The deposition Thursday comes as the House Oversight Committee attempts to zero in on members of Epstein’s inner circle to better understand how the disgraced financier was able to commit decades of crime with seeming impunity.
Following higher profile depositions of people like billionaire Leslie Wexner as well as Bill and Hillary Clinton, the questioning of both Indyke and Kahn arguably presents the committee with their strongest opportunity to learn more about Epstein’s life and crimes.
“I was not aware of the nature or extent of Epstein’s abuse of so many women until after Epstein’s death,” Kahn told lawmakers last week, according to his prepared remarks. “However, it pains me to think, and I deeply regret, that I may have unknowingly assisted Epstein in any way.”
Executor of Epstein’s Trust
In a will signed two days before he was found dead in a Manhattan jail cell, Epstein named Kahn and Indyke as the co-executors of his estate and bequeathed them $25 million and $50 million, respectively. At the time of his death, Epstein’s estate was valued as much as $650 million. It was last valued at approximately $127 million, according to an October 2025 court filing, after paying out multiple settlements to Epstein’s victims.
As co-executors of Epstein’s estate, Indyke and Kahn recently agreed to settle a proposed class-action lawsuit brought by Epstein’s victims that accused them of “facilitation, participation, and concealment of Epstein’s illegal conduct” for their own financial gain.
According to the lawsuit, both men helped “structure Epstein’s bank accounts and cash withdrawals to give Epstein and his associates access to large amounts of cash in furtherance of sex trafficking.”
“The Epstein Enterprise would not have existed for the duration it did and at its scope and scale, without the collaboration and support of others. No one, except perhaps Ghislaine Maxwell, was as essential and central to Epstein’s operation as these Defendants,” the lawsuit alleged.
The settlement did not include an admission of wrongdoing and still needs to be approved by a judge. Though the lawsuit was brought against them personally, the $25-35 million settlement would be paid by Epstein’s estate, according to the settlement terms.
“Neither Mr. Indyke nor Mr. Kahn socialized with Mr. Epstein, and both men reject as categorically false any suggestion that they knowingly facilitated or assisted Mr. Epstein in his sexual abuse or trafficking of women, or that they were aware of his actions while they provided professional services to him,” an attorney for the men told ABC News in December.
Allegedly arranged sham marriages
In a lawsuit filed by government of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Indyke and Kahn were alleged to have helped facilitate at least three sham marriages created to secure immigration status for some of Epstein’s victims, further securing control of the women and ensuring they could remain in the United States.
“The victims were coerced into participating in these arranged marriages, and understood that there would be consequences, including serious reputational and bodily harm, if they refused to enter a marriage or attempted to end it,” the complaint alleged.
According to a civil lawsuit filed in 2019 by an anonymous accuser, one woman alleged that Epstein’s longtime attorney — not explicitly named as Indyke in the lawsuit — helped prepare the legal paperwork for the marriage, going as far as arranging photographs “to give the appearance that the marriage was legitimate.”
“When the victim inquired about getting divorced … Indyke tried to talk her out of a divorce and threatened that she would lose Epstein’s protection,” a 2024 lawsuit alleged.
Files released earlier this year by the Department of Justice appeared to reference some of the marriages allegedly arranged by Indyke and Kahn.
“Good morning Jeffrey! We are going now to get marriage license,” an unidentified individual wrote Epstein in 2013. “She is asking if it’s possible to meet with you? Because she has some questions.”
Withdrawing thousands in cash
Court filings as well as documents released by the Department of Justice suggested that both Indyke and Kahn played integral roles in managing Epstein’s wealth and overseeing his regular expenses, including alleged payments to women.
According to the Virgin Islands lawsuit — which was settled by the Epstein estate with no admission of wrongdoing — Indyke and Kahn allegedly arranged payments from Epstein’s personal, corporate and nonprofits bank accounts to victims. That lawsuit alleged that Epstein — together with Kahn and Indyke — managed more than 140 different bank accounts.
According to documents released by the DOJ, Indyke served as an officer for many of the holding and shell companies related to Epstein’s real estate and financial holdings.
A 2020 settlement between Deutsche Bank and the New York state financial regulator also suggested that an attorney for Epstein — who sources told ABC News is Indyke — methodically withdrew cash for Epstein in a manner they said intentionally avoided scrutiny.
Limiting the withdrawals to $7,500 in cash — the maximum amount permitted and below the threshold to trigger concerns — Indyke allegedly withdrew hundreds of thousands of dollars for Epstein over four years. While the transactions were below the $10,000 limit to trigger an alert to the Treasury Department, a report by New York State’s Department of Financial Services faulted Deutsche Bank for ignoring red flags about Epstein’s bank accounts.
Jail visits and a character reference
After securing a plea deal in Florida, Jeffrey Epstein was visited in jail frequently by Indyke, according to visitor logs maintained by the Palm Beach Sheriff. Indyke also helped secure a lenient work-release program for Epstein by vouching for his employment, allowing Epstein to leave the jail for up to 16 hours a day, ABC News reported in 2021.
Prior to Epstein’s plea deal, Indyke also attested to Epstein’s character. According to a letter sent from defense lawyers to prosecutors in Florida, Indyke vouched for Epstein’s character and claimed that Epstein provided financial and emotional support to his family.
“Although Jeffrey was adamant that we owed him nothing, Jeffery honored us by agreeing to be the godfather of our children,” the letter quoted Indyke.
