In her first public interview since the fatal shooting of her ex-husband Alex Jeffrey Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis on January 24, 2026, Jessica Pretti has spoken out — and her words have sent shockwaves through those who mourned the 37-year-old ICU nurse as a devoted caregiver and compassionate advocate.

Jessica, who shares two young children with Alex, told local media that the couple had been completely estranged for more than two years following their divorce in late 2023. “The marriage broke down when he became deeply involved in protests,” she said, her voice steady but heavy. “He grew obsessed with extremist advocacy circles. Whenever his past activism was brought up — even casually — he would become extremely agitated, almost paranoid. It wasn’t the Alex I married anymore. The person I knew slowly disappeared.”

She described how what began as passionate support for immigrant rights and healthcare equity — issues Alex encountered daily in the ICU — eventually morphed into something darker and more consuming. “He started talking about ‘direct action,’ ‘revolution,’ ‘sacrificing for the cause’ in ways that frightened me,” Jessica recalled. “He would disappear for days, come back emotionally exhausted, angry at the system, angry at me for not understanding. Eventually I had to protect myself and the children. We cut off all contact except for court-ordered co-parenting communication.”

The most unsettling revelation came when Jessica addressed the deeper question many have been asking since Alex’s death: who was the real man behind the headlines?

“He was not the kind of person you think,” she said quietly. “Everyone sees the compassionate nurse, the gentle father, the man who wanted to help others. And that part was real… but there was another side. A side that was buried very deep. A family secret from his childhood that he never fully dealt with — something involving violence and betrayal that left scars he never let anyone see. I believe that wound silently shaped so many of his decisions, especially in the last few years.”

Jessica declined to elaborate on the exact nature of the “family secret,” citing the privacy of their children, but made it clear she believes this unresolved trauma played a significant role in the escalating radicalization that ultimately placed Alex in the path of tragedy on that Minneapolis street.

The statement has stunned both the activist community that once embraced Alex and the medical professionals who worked alongside him. Colleagues at the hospital where he worked described him as “consistently kind, calm under pressure, always the one who stayed late to comfort families.” Many expressed disbelief that the man they knew could have become involved in the kind of high-risk activism that led to his confrontation with federal agents.

Meanwhile, the ongoing federal investigation into the shooting has taken on new layers of complexity. Body-worn camera footage shows Alex moving toward officers while armed, ignoring repeated commands to stop and show his hands. No clear frame shows him reaching for or brandishing the weapon, but agents maintain they acted on a perceived imminent threat in a volatile protest environment.

Jessica concluded her interview with a plea: “I want people to remember that behind every headline is a real human being — flawed, hurting, complicated. Alex was all of those things. He was not a monster. He was a man who lost his way. And now my children have lost their father forever.”

As Minneapolis continues to grapple with the shooting’s aftermath and calls for independent review grow louder, Jessica Pretti’s words have forced a painful reckoning: the public face Alex showed the world may have hidden a much more troubled, more fragile man than anyone realized.

For a family already shattered by violence, the truth — whatever its full shape — offers no comfort, only more questions about how a life once dedicated to healing could end in such devastating circumstances.