On Sunday, a Venezuelan national was shot and injured by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent after the Department of Homeland Security said he fled on foot before getting in a car to flee agents.
Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, was living in Austin, Texas, and working as a DoorDash driver.
The shooting happened in the early afternoon in North Austin after ICE agents attempted to apprehend Perez, who had a final order of removal.
According to Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis, there was a small pursuit on foot before Perez entered a car and fled from agents. After the suspect crashed the car under an underpass, agents shot Perez, leaving him in critical but stable condition.
After the shooting was announced, Austin Mayor Kirk Watson released a statement on X saying he was “very angry and extremely disappointed that a person was shot on the streets of Austin by ICE.” He also characterized the agency’s operations as “rogue.”
Democrat U.S. Rep. Greg Casar also commented at a press conference, saying that the only way for “Austin to be safe” is for ICE to leave the city, and he compared immigration enforcement to “war.”
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“I think the message remains that for Austin to be safe, ICE should end its surge here in our community,” Casar said.
Republican U.S. Rep. Chip Roy responded to Casar’s comments, saying that “the war is the one being waged against Americans through mass legal and illegal immigration.”
Following the comments from Democrat officials, the streets of Austin erupted into riots, with people blocking roads, stealing equipment to form blockades, and waving foreign flags as they walked the streets.
The outrage caused the Austin Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety to respond to the unrest in riot gear and with tear gas to push the crowd back.
Perez’s lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, told Fox News that Perez entered the U.S. lawfully.
“We are actively working to obtain additional information and clarify the circumstances surrounding the matter. We do not want to speculate or provide information that has not yet been confirmed. What we do understand is that he previously held a valid work permit and that, based on the information available to us, he entered the United States lawfully,” Lincoln-Goldfinch said in a statement to Fox News.
Lincoln-Goldfinch also said that Perez had been released from the hospital and is in ICE custody, sharing that both she and his family are “deeply concerned” that they have not been able to see him.
“Hospital attorneys at Dell Seton Medical Center have confirmed that Wilber Rafael Garces Perez has been released from the hospital into what we believe is ICE custody. After he was held for approximately six hours, officers declined to provide his wife with meaningful information about his status or circumstances,” Lincoln-Goldfinch said in her statement. “We are deeply concerned that his wife and family have not been permitted to see him and have not received a meaningful update regarding his current condition or whereabouts.”
“Our immediate concern is ensuring that his family receives accurate and timely information and that appropriate access and communication are provided while the matter is being addressed,” she continued.
The Department of Homeland Security released a statement Sunday night contradicting Lincoln-Goldfinch’s statement, saying that Perez entered the country illegally under the Biden administration. However, DHS said the investigation remains ongoing.
On Monday, Casar sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and ICE acting Director David Venturella demanding an “immediate, independent investigation into the shooting.” Casar is also demanding that the ICE agent who shot Perez take accountability for “any and all wrongdoing.”
As of now, there is no more information on whether Perez has been removed from the United States. DHS says that the situation is developing and will update the public when more information becomes available.
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