‘Barely made it out alive’: James O’Keefe attacked in Minneapolis and gets threatened, ‘You have 1 hour to leave or you’re dead’
Undercover journalist James O’Keefe and his team were attacked and had their lives threatened Saturday while covering the fatal shooting of armed anti-ICE activist Alex Pretti by a federal agent.
“My team and I are in downtown Minneapolis right now. We still have undercover reporters inside the mob. I was at the scene of the shooting this morning and barely made it out alive,” O’Keefe said on X.
BREAKING: MINNEAPOLIS MOB THREATENS TO KILL O’KEEFE — ICE BOTTLES THROWN, FOLLOWED, AND OMG TEAM UNDER ATTACK.
My team and I are in downtown Minneapolis right now. We still have undercover reporters inside the mob. I was at the scene of the shooting this morning and barely… pic.twitter.com/n8p229vuJ3
— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) January 24, 2026
“Hundreds surrounded us. They were throwing ice bottles, ripping off my bulletproof vest. They even followed us all the way back to our hotel.”
“As all of this was happening, we received death threats via text.”
The texted threat stated: “We know you’re in Minneapolis, you’re with Okeefe and his group of Nazis. You’re in a white Ford license plate [redacted] from Florida. You have 1 hour to leave or you’re dead.”
O’Keefe noted: “Pray for our team out in the field. We are reaching a boiling point in this country.”
Submitted a report to the FBI with all the information. pic.twitter.com/ATxWZRrTrQ
— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) January 25, 2026
Pretti, 37, was armed when he was fatally shot by a Customs and Border Patrol officer on Saturday while documenting federal law-enforcement activities, and the FBI is now investigating the incident.
O’Keefe later posted an “urgent update” on Saturday, indicating:
I’ve never experienced anything quite like today in my life. I’ve interacted with the Cartel and have witnessed some crazy things in the desert in ’24. But what strikes me is how organized these agitators in Minneapolis are. They have spotters everywhere in the city and suburbs, on street corners, even 30 minutes away from downtown.
They have people at hotels that work with them and signal to them which made it making it difficult for us to lose our tail once my cover was blown. Usually I lose a tail. Not this time. We switched locations THREE times. I recorded and posted this while leaving Wayzata, while they were STILL surveilling. We all agreed we must make the threats public ASAP, even if we had people still in the field with the hidden cams.
Earlier around noon, while @camhigby released his report on the Signal threads, I was inside what appeared to be a fully autonomous Zone. No police presence. The police were told to leave. I identified myself as Press and they said they will kill Press and will not let me leave. My skin was fully covered because it was so cold. But because they couldn’t verify who I was, they screamed and started throwing ice bottles at us. One hit, @SKRUCHTENMMA, a marine who was with me. They patted him down like THEY were the authorities, attempting to confiscate any weapons. They were set to destroy our vehicle before we even got to it. I will have a full video report shortly.
But the bigger picture here is more important. I am angry. But not at the agitators. I find myself already angry at the people who don’t understand what we’re dealing with and will do nothing about it. When I got to the suburbs I felt like I was in a simulation.
I believe the American people need to wake up. This moment is a warning about where we’re headed. Fear pushes people to care only about their money and their families—I get it. But when fear turns inward, when self-preservation and greed replace moral courage, evil goes unchallenged. And history shows that what we ignore today will come for all of us tomorrow.
Ironically and incredibly, I see that these Communists do not fear death in the same way most good people seem to. The only thing the Communists fear is exposure itself. And that’s good news because it may be our only option.
I’m dead serious about investigating the prosecutors themselves if they don’t hold these Minnesota fraudsters and violent mobsters accountable for what they’re doing. Stay tuned for the videos.
Follow Joe on X @JoeKovacsNews
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