The NBA Players Association (NBAPA) condemned the shooting death of Minneapolis citizen Alex Pretti at the hands of a federal immigration officer, and stressed that players can no longer “remain silent”, but must “stand up for the right to freedom of expression”.

The NBAPA’s reaction comes after Tyrese Haliburton, leader of the Indiana Pacers and one of the best players in the league, posted on his X account the message: “Alex Pretti was murdered”.

“NBA players can no longer remain silent”

“Following the news of another deadly shooting in Minneapolis, a city that has been at the forefront of the fight against injustice, NBA players can no longer remain silent. Now more than ever we must stand up for the right to freedom of expression and stand in solidarity with the people of Minnesota who are protesting and risking their lives to demand justice,” the NBAPA wrote in a statement.

“The NBA fraternity of players, like the United States, is a community enriched by its citizens from around the world, and we refuse to allow the flames of division to threaten the civil liberties that are meant to protect us all,” he continued.

“The NBPA and its members express our deepest condolences to the families of Alex Pretti and Renee Good, and our thoughts remain focused on the safety and well-being of all members of our community,” it concluded.

The NBAPA’s statement came after immigration officers shot and killed Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse, during an operation to capture an immigrant.

This shooting is the second such incident in less than three weeks in Minneapolis, where on January 7 a woman, Renee Good, died after being shot by an ICE officer.

Pretti died after standing between immigration officers and two women protesting their operations.

Several officers surrounded the man, restrained him and seized a weapon from him before shooting him several times while he was on the ground, according to numerous videos of the incident.

The Department of Homeland Security, which is in charge of immigration operations, has claimed that Pretti tried to attack the officers and brandish his weapon, even though none of the multiple images of the incident show anything of the sort, and the department’s own secretary, Kristi Noem, accused the man of “domestic terrorism.”

The large-scale raids in Minneapolis were ordered by the Trump administration in early January, when a documentary by a conservative YouTuber put the spotlight back on cases of federal funds embezzled by day care centers run by members of the Somali community.