Women accused of biting agents' fingers moments after Alex Pretti was killed; one had tip bitten off

Paul Walsh, Star Tribune on Jan 26, 2026

Published in Women

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MINNEAPOLIS — Two women have been charged with biting the fingers of U.S. Border Patrol officers moments after federal agents fatally shot Alex Pretti in Minneapolis over the weekend near the scene of an immigration enforcement action.

Claire Louise Feng, 27, of St. Paul was arrested on Jan. 24 and charged in U.S. District Court a day later with assaulting a U.S. Border Patrol agent.

Charged with the same count and also arrested that day was Emily Duchateau Baierl, 37, of Minneapolis.

Both women were scheduled to appear in court on Monday. Court records do not list an attorney for either woman. In the meantime, they remain held in the Sherburne County jail pending determination of a bail amount.

According to the criminal complaints against Feng and Baierl, which included photos of the unnamed officers’ injuries:

After Pretti was killed about 9 a.m., federal agents secured a perimeter as a crowd began to gather.

Around 9:25 a.m., a female kicked a chemical cannister toward federal agents after it was deployed as part of the effort to keep people in the crowd from getting near where the shooting occurred.

An agent fell to the pavement while attempting to arrest the female. While the agent was on the ground, Feng tackled him. A second agent pulled Feng off and took her to the ground. While Feng was face down, the second agent reached under her in an attempt to restrain one of her arms.

“Feng then forcibly bit the right ring finger of (the second agent),” the complaint read.

The wounded agent’s vision was distorted by his gas mask, leaving him “not aware of the severity of Feng’s bite, but (he) knew he was injured,” the complaint continued.

Once he removed his glove, the injured agent saw that a tip of the finger was bitten off.

“The victim located the tip of his finger inside his glove and was able to get medical attention approximately 45 minutes after the incident,” the complaint noted.

Around the same time, a Border Patrol agent attempted to arrest Baierl after seeing her throw objects after federal officers.

While the agent was trying to arrest Baierl, someone pushed him off her. A second agent then attempted to detain Baierl. While the second officer tried to remove her mask, Baierl bit him on the middle finger of his glove-covered right hand.

The death of Pretti, 37, of Minneapolis marked the second fatal shooting this month involving federal agents who have arrived in Minnesota en masse as part of Operation Metro Surge’s immigration enforcement action.

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