US Prosecutors Charge Venezuelan Man Shot by ICE Officer in Austin
Federal prosecutors in the United States have filed assault charges against a Venezuelan national who was shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Austin, Texas.
Court documents state that Wilber Rafael Garces Perez was stopped by ICE officers as he left a restaurant after they determined he was subject to a final order of removal.
The officers identified themselves as immigration agents during the stop and requested his Texas driver's licence, which he handed over. Once his identity was confirmed, they instructed him to get out of the vehicle.
In his account to investigators, Garces Perez said he asked to move his car to another spot because he anticipated being taken into custody and wanted his wife to be able to collect the vehicle.
He acknowledged that he did not follow the officers' orders to leave the car and drove away. According to the affidavit, his driver's side mirror struck one of the officers in the torso as he pulled off.
A short high-speed pursuit followed through an area containing both businesses and homes.
An ICE officer who was outside the vehicle and was not equipped with a body camera said Garces Perez tried to run him down with the car. The officer then fired his handgun through the rear window, hitting Garces Perez in the back.
After receiving hospital treatment, Garces Perez was transferred to an immigration detention centre, where he remains with the bullet still inside his back.
The Department of Homeland Security subsequently said it would take charge of the investigation into the shooting. It also noted that Garces Perez had been issued a final order of removal for entering the country illegally during the Biden administration.
The shooting triggered broad anger and demonstrations in Austin, a city with a significant Hispanic community.
ICE has faced criticism over a series of officer-involved shootings, among them the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, in Minnesota earlier this year. Fatal shootings involving ICE officers in Houston and Maine in July have also drawn outrage in recent months over President Trump's immigration enforcement drive.
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