ICE Shooting Leaves Venezuelan Driver Detained With Bullet Lodged

A Venezuelan DoorDash delivery driver, Wilber Rafael Garcés Perez, was shot by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Austin, Texas, and later transferred from a hospital to an ICE detention facility with a bullet reportedly still lodged in his back. His lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said Garcés Perez called his wife from the hospital while yelling in pain. The circumstances of the shooting remain unclear, and the US Department of Homeland Security said it was investigating. The incident prompted protests in Austin, where demonstrators demanded that ICE leave the city. Protesters gathered near a damaged blue Toyota Corolla, reportedly the vehicle involved, while ICE agents remained at the scene. Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said residents had a right to know what happened and to feel safe, adding that ICE operations had increased significantly in the city in recent weeks. Texas Congressman Greg Casar called for an immediate independent investigation, the release of body-camera footage, and accountability for any officer who broke the law. The shooting comes amid intensified immigration enforcement during Donald Trump’s second term, including arrests and deportation efforts that the administration says are necessary for public safety and border security. Critics and activists accuse the administration of violating due process. ICE has faced growing scrutiny following other shootings, including the death of Houston resident Lorenzo Salgado Araujo during an ICE traffic stop, despite his reportedly not being the target of an investigation. The article also notes broader concerns about ICE tactics and accountability. Democrats have called for reforms including mandatory body cameras and a ban on agents concealing their faces. Earlier in September, the Justice Department charged an ICE agent with allegedly lying about a separate non-fatal shooting involving a Venezuelan migrant in Minnesota. Republican Florida lawmaker Maria Elvira Salazar has also criticized the detention of people without criminal records, although she said she believes President Trump will continue leading the country in the right direction.

A Venezuelan man who was shot by a federal immigration agent in Texas says he remains in pain and is being held at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center with a bullet lodged in his back. Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, spoke by phone through his attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, during a news conference in Austin. He said he was bleeding, receiving inadequate medical care and being forced to sleep on the floor at the South Texas ICE Processing Center, about 130 miles southwest of Austin. Perez also said he was questioned by agents while in detention. Perez described a different sequence of events from the account provided by Austin police and reported by The New York Times. He said he had been working as a DoorDash delivery driver when his car was sideswiped by agents who did not identify themselves or use lights or sirens. According to Perez, an agent shot him while he was still inside the vehicle and there was no foot chase. Austin police said he had fled from agents. The New York Times, citing two unnamed sources familiar with the federal investigation, reported that agents had identified Perez during a license-plate check, pulled him over and told him he was under arrest before he allegedly drove away, leading to a short chase, collision and shooting. Perez said he was released from a hospital within four hours and that a doctor told him ICE agents were eager to transfer him to detention. Lincoln-Goldfinch said the reported federal account did not match her client’s version but did not clarify whether agents had stopped him before the shooting. ICE and the Department of Homeland Security did not respond to requests for comment. DHS has said Perez was in the United States illegally and had a final removal order, but it has not detailed the shooting. The report places the incident amid broader scrutiny of federal immigration shootings and deaths in ICE custody.

A 28-year-old Venezuelan man, Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, was shot by a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer while making a DoorDash delivery in Austin, Texas. His lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, claims Perez was taken to an immigration detention facility roughly 100 miles away with the bullet still lodged in his back near his spine. Perez was initially treated at a hospital and then released into ICE custody, but was later hospitalized again after experiencing severe pain and losing movement on the left side of his body. Lincoln-Goldfinch disputes ICE’s account of the shooting. She says Perez did not attempt to evade officers and was trying to find a place to pull over when agents allegedly sideswiped his vehicle. According to her account, the agents were not initially using lights or sirens, and an officer opened fire after the collision. Speaking by phone from the Pearsall Detention Facility, Perez said doctors had not removed the bullet because of its proximity to his spine. The lawyer has requested Perez’s release from detention so he can receive appropriate medical care. The Department of Homeland Security is investigating the incident. Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said evidence, rather than speculation, would guide the inquiry. US Representative Greg Casar has called for the release of body-camera footage and a full investigation. The shooting has prompted protests near the scene, with demonstrators carrying Mexican and Guatemalan flags and calling for ICE to leave Austin. The incident comes amid broader scrutiny of federal immigration operations. DHS says Perez remains in federal custody pending removal from the United States, while his lawyer and Casar have challenged parts of the government’s account of his immigration status.

The article reports that Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan national, was shot by a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in Texas while he was working as a DoorDash delivery driver. Garces Perez told reporters that he was delivering an order on Sunday when an ICE agent rammed his vehicle and shot him. Garces Perez said the bullet fractured his clavicle and remains lodged in his body because doctors determined it was too close to his spinal cord to remove safely. He described being in significant pain and said he was not doing well. The report also states that he was jailed with the bullet still inside him. Several hours later, his lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said Garces Perez had been transferred to another hospital after developing paralysis on the left side of his body. The article does not provide further details about the circumstances of the encounter, the identity of the ICE agent, the reason the vehicle was allegedly rammed, or whether any investigation or legal action had begun. The report is based primarily on statements from Garces Perez and his attorney. It highlights the physical consequences of the shooting, including the fractured clavicle, the retained bullet, and the reported neurological symptoms. The incident occurred amid the involvement of a federal immigration agent, but the supplied article does not offer additional context about the broader immigration-enforcement operation or the official response from ICE or other authorities.