MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US investigates ICE shooting of Venezuelan delivery driver in Austin

An ICE agent got out of an unmarked truck, rammed Garcés Pérez's vehicle, then exited and fired at least five times

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot and wounded a Venezuelan man on Sunday in Austin, Texas, while he was making a delivery for DoorDash, in an incident the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed it is investigating alongside the FBI and which prompted calls for an independent investigation from local officials.

The wounded man was identified by his lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, as Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, 28. The shooting occurred around 1 p.m. near the intersection of U.S. Highway 183 and Anderson Square, in North Austin. According to Austin-Travis County EMS Chief Robert Luckritz, the man was shot in the torso and was transported in serious but stable condition. His lawyer, by contrast, placed the wound “in the back, below the neck,” and a witness who asked to be identified only as “Juan” said he saw two bullet wounds in the man's back after approaching the vehicle. DoorDash confirmed Garcés Pérez was working as a delivery driver at the time and said it was investigating.

Accounts of how the incident began also diverge. Austin City Council member Mike Siegel, who arrived at the scene, said an ICE agent got out of an unmarked truck, rammed Garcés Pérez's vehicle, then exited and fired at least five times. Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said a foot pursuit may have preceded the shooting, though she described the information as preliminary. The Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed it had received a request for assistance from ICE over a vehicle pursuit involving Garcés Pérez's car.

Accounts of the wounded man's immigration status conflict. A DHS spokesperson said Garcés Pérez “entered illegally” under the Biden administration and had a final removal order. His lawyer, Lincoln-Goldfinch, said that, based on the information available to her team, he had entered the country lawfully and had previously held a valid work permit; his wife said she was unaware of any removal order and believed he was still in immigration proceedings. Neither account has been independently confirmed.

Garcés Pérez was discharged from Dell Seton Medical Center around 4:30 p.m. and transferred to ICE custody, a hospital attorney told Lincoln-Goldfinch. His family had not been able to reach him or obtain information about his condition. Austin's Democratic mayor, Kirk Watson, condemned the incident and said local police, who were not involved in the operation, would carry out an independent investigation alongside the Texas Rangers. The DHS spokesperson said the Homeland Security Investigations office is leading the inquiry into the agent who fired.

Austin Congressman Greg Casar warned on X that if Garcés Pérez is deported, “the key witness to the shooting disappears,” and sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin demanding an investigation and the preservation of evidence, including the man's continued presence in the country. Congressman Joaquín Castro called for the release of the agents' body-camera footage.

The incident comes just over two months after ICE shot and killed Mexican immigrant Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston, in an operation in which he was not the person being sought, as DHS itself acknowledged; that case is under review by a grand jury. According to a Washington Post report published in July, at least six drivers have died and eleven more have been wounded by gunfire from federal immigration agents since Trump returned to the White House. In January, two US citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, were shot and killed during an ICE operation in Minneapolis.