Greg Bovino leaves Minneapolis
Greg Bovino has led the Trump administration’s military approach to immigration enforcement.
Law enforcement and government officials have come under intense criticism for their response to the shooting death of Alex Preti by federal agents in Minneapolis last week.
Greg Bovino, the head of the U.S. Border Patrol and one of the architects of the government’s aggressive immigration crackdown, is in a particularly tough spot.
The commander is reportedly leaving Minnesota less than a week after Preti’s death amid growing outrage both on the ground in the Twin Cities and at the Capitol, according to multiple media reports.
Here’s what we know:
Bovino plans to leave Twin Cities
The fatal shooting of Preti, a 37-year-old nurse, on Saturday, January 24, was the second fatal shooting of an American by federal agents in Minneapolis this month. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents shot and killed Renee Nicole Good, 37, earlier this month while protesting the presence of federal immigration enforcement agents.
The Associated Press, the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal reported on January 26, citing anonymous sources, that Bovino plans to leave the Twin Cities. The Atlantic Magazine also reported that Bovino plans to return to duty at the El Centro border station in California.
But the future of Bovino’s tenure with the Border Patrol remains uncertain, with Homeland Security officials suppressing reports that he would be reassigned and later retire from the Border Patrol.
“Secretary Gregory Bovino has not yet been relieved of duty,” DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said in a Jan. 26 statement to USA TODAY.
Bovino’s departure from Minnesota comes after the White House announced on Monday, January 27, that it would send Border Patrol agent Tom Homan to Minnesota as the Trump administration’s new immigration enforcement force.
Over the past year, Mr. Bovino has emerged as one of the public faces of President Donald Trump’s immigration operations, spearheading the military approach to immigration enforcement that has come to characterize his administration’s efforts.
Mr. Bovino, along with DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, determined that Mr. Pretti’s killing was an act of self-defense by a federal officer and said Mr. Pretti intended to harm the officer without providing evidence to support the charge.
He first gained national attention when he led the Trump administration’s Midway Blitz against Chicago. His high-profile incidents in the nation’s third-largest city include using a Black Hawk helicopter to raid an apartment building. Using chemical irritants on protesters in clear violation of a judge’s order. He was then ordered to appear in federal court and was reprimanded by U.S. District Judge Sarah L. Ellis for the tear gas incident.
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Kathryn Palmer is USA TODAY’s political reporter. She can be reached at the following address: kapalmer@usatoday.com And to X@Kathryn Purml. Sign up for her daily politics newsletter here.
