You run your company like a fugitive.
You hide your direct contact info deep in the footer of your website. You use “noreply@” email addresses because you are terrified of hearing what your customers actually think. You let your legal team write your apology letters. You think this is “risk mitigation.” It is not. It is cowardice. And as the explosive fallout from the Minneapolis shooting of Alex Pretti proves, anonymity is no longer a shield—it is a target on your back.
The recent identification of Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP officer Raymundo Gutierrez as the shooters in the Pretti case is not just a headline; it is a violent case study in the total collapse of “Faceless Authority”.
If you think you can operate in the dark, make mistakes, and hide behind a corporate logo (or a mask), you are preparing for your own funeral.
The Delusion of the “Corporate Mask”
Your ego tells you that you are protecting the brand by keeping things vague. You think if nobody knows who screwed up, the company is safe.
Look at the reality. Ochoa and Gutierrez were part of “Operation Metro Surge,” a dragnet where agents were allowed to hide their identities with masks—a practice almost unheard of in standard law enforcement. The logic was simple: If they can’t see our faces, they can’t hold us accountable.
How is your business any different? When your service fails, do you offer a direct line to a decision-maker, or do you force the client into an endless loop of chatbots and anonymous support tickets? The federal government tried to keep the public from the one thing needed for accountability: identity. The result wasn’t safety. It was rage. It was massive protests. It was a demand for criminal investigations.
The lesson is brutal but simple: Anonymity breeds distrust. Distrust breeds investigation. Investigation breeds destruction.
If you refuse to humanize your leadership during a crisis, the market will dehumanize your brand. They will not see you as a “company working through an issue.” They will see you as a faceless enemy that needs to be destroyed.
The “Spin” Will Die in 4K Resolution
You are still operating like it is 1990. You think you can control the narrative with a press release. You think you can say, “The customer was wrong,” and people will believe you.
In the Pretti case, the official narrative began almost immediately. Officials claimed Pretti was a threat. Top Trump aide Stephen Miller called him a “would-be assassin”. Commander Gregory Bovino claimed Pretti “violently resisted” and that agents feared for their lives.
Then the videos came out. Bystander footage showed a masked agent knocking a woman to the ground. It showed Pretti coming to her aid. It showed agents immediately deploying pepper spray and piling on him before firing approximately 10 shots. The video evidence contradicted the official claims that he came to attack.
Here is the weapon you are afraid to use: Radical Truth. In the digital age, everyone is a documentarian. Your employees are screenshotting your Slack channels. Your customers are recording your service calls. Bystanders are filming your operations. If your internal narrative (“We value our customers”) conflicts with the external reality (“We pepper-sprayed a customer who asked for a refund”), you are dead.
Miller had to walk back his statement later, admitting protocol “may not have been following” standards. Do not put yourself in a position where you have to “change tack” after the truth comes out. Own the ugly truth first. If you screwed up, say it before the video leaks. If you don’t, you aren’t just incompetent; you are a liar.
Escalation is the Hallmark of the Incompetent
Why did this happen? Because of a failure to de-escalate. Former CBP commissioner Gil Kerlikowske noted that the shooting might have been prevented if agents hadn’t immediately jumped to force. “The other agent could have said ‘don’t interfere’ or ‘stand back’… Rather than move immediately to pepper spray”.
This is a direct mirror of how weak CEOs handle criticism. When a stakeholder challenges you (like Pretti challenged the agents), what is your reflex?
- De-escalate: Listen, understand, explain.
- Pepper Spray: Threaten legal action, fire the employee, block the user.
Ochoa, the shooter, was described as a “gun enthusiast” with 25 rifles and pistols. He was armed to the teeth but apparently lacked the one tool that matters: the ability to manage a situation without violence. If your only tool is “power” (firing people, suing people, silencing people), you are not a leader. You are a tyrant with a ticking clock. True authority does not need to hide behind a mask or a gun. True authority can de-escalate a crisis with words and actions.
Accountability is Coming, Whether You Like It or Not
You cannot hide forever. CBP refused to release names. Did it work? No. ProPublica viewed the records. The names Jesus Ochoa and Raymundo Gutierrez are now public knowledge. The Department of Justice is investigating. Senators are demanding answers.
Strategic Repetition: The cover-up is always more expensive than the crime.
Every day you spend hiding the truth is interest compounding on your eventual bankruptcy. Bovino, the commander who orchestrated these aggressive sweeps, has already been removed from his role. He tried to play the tough guy. Now he is reassigned. The agents are on leave. The mask didn’t save them. It only made the unmasking more painful.
The Kill Shot
The tragedy of Alex Pretti is a grim reminder that in a high-stakes environment, Process cannot replace Humanity, and Policy cannot replace Accountability.
You have a choice to make about the culture of your company today:
- The Black Box: Continue to hide your decision-making, shield your executives from criticism, and treat every customer complaint as a hostile attack.
- The Glass Box: Tear down the walls. Put your name on the line. When you fail, stand in front of the camera unmasked and say, “This is on me.”
The era of the “Anonymous Operator” is over. Representative Jamie Raskin said it best: “They should not be anonymous. They should be identifiable”.
Take off the mask. If you are too afraid to show your face when things go wrong, you don’t deserve to be seen when things go right.
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