Daijiworld Media Network - Austin
Austin, Sep 21: A US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer shot and wounded a man during a traffic stop in Austin, Texas, on Sunday, triggering protests at the scene and calls from local officials for an independent investigation.
The man, identified by an immigration attorney as 28-year-old Venezuelan national Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, was shot once in the torso and taken to a hospital in serious but stable condition, according to Austin officials.
Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said city police officers were not involved in either the ICE operation or the shooting. She said the incident occurred after a traffic stop on the north side of the city and that her department's special investigations unit was at the scene. Officials said the available information was preliminary, and details of what led to the shooting remained limited.
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, did not participate in the city news conference and had not provided details despite repeated requests for comment.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said he wanted the city's police department involved in the investigation to provide what he described as "clear, third-party eyes" on the case. He said he did not believe it would be appropriate for ICE to investigate the shooting on its own.
Watson also said Austin residents have a right to feel safe in their city and that an independent investigation would help establish credibility. He said local authorities did not know the whereabouts of the federal agent involved in the shooting and expressed hope that the officer would remain in the city and state while the matter was investigated.
Travis County District Attorney José Pompa Garza's office also called for local police and prosecutors to be included in the investigation and requested federal cooperation and access to evidence.
Garces Perez's immigration attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said she believed he had no criminal history and no final order of removal from the United States. She later clarified to The Associated Press that she did not know his current immigration status.
The attorney said Garces Perez's family struggled to obtain information from the hospital about his condition and whereabouts. Shortly before 7 p.m. Sunday, his wife was reportedly informed by the hospital's attorney that he had been released into ICE custody several hours earlier. It was not immediately clear whether he remained in hospital while in ICE custody or had been transferred to another location.
A dark blue Toyota Corolla was found under an overpass at the scene with damage to its passenger-side door and what appeared to be bullet holes. The vehicle was later towed away and traffic resumed.
A large law enforcement presence remained at the site as about 100 protesters gathered. Some protesters shouted at officers carrying riot shields, while passing motorists honked in apparent support. Demonstrators held signs criticising ICE and expressing concerns over public safety.
US Representative Greg Casar, a Democrat representing parts of Austin, called for transparency and an independent investigation into the shooting, including the release of relevant body-camera footage.
The incident comes amid an intensified ICE enforcement campaign across the United States. It also follows other shootings involving immigration officers. In July, an ICE officer fatally shot 52-year-old Lorenzo Salgado Araujo of Houston after federal agents in unmarked vehicles pursued him while he was taking his construction crew to a job site. Another ICE officer shot a 25-year-old Colombian man in Maine in July.
The Austin shooting has added to scrutiny of federal immigration enforcement operations and the use of force by ICE officers, while authorities continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident.