Austin Incident Involving ICE Agent Leaves Man Injured
An incident involving a federal immigration officer led to a man being injured in Austin, Texas, on Sunday. The situation has raised questions and concerns within the community.
The injured individual has been identified as Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan national. His attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, revealed that he is married to a U.S. legal resident. Perez reportedly contacted his wife after the shooting, expressing pain and distress from inside his vehicle.
According to Lincoln-Goldfinch, “We were told that he was at this hospital, so we came back and they have run us off the property,” referring to Dell Seton Medical Center in Austin. She added, “We have been informed that if he’s in ICE custody, they will decline to confirm that he’s here. And no one has updated her about his status.”
Austin Councilmember Mike Siegel, who lives nearby, visited the scene and noted that Perez’s car had multiple bullet holes on the passenger side. His observations were corroborated by photographs.
In addition, video footage provided by Siegel showed an individual, who appeared uninjured and dressed in civilian clothes, being handcuffed at the scene.
During a press conference, Austin Mayor Kirk Watson stated that Perez was in serious but stable condition.
Siegel commented on the event, saying, “This is a terrible incident that we were hoping to avoid in our community. My hope today is that we can investigate what happened, and if an (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) officer committed a crime that they will be fully prosecuted, and then we can hope to restore some semblance of law and order in this country.”
The exact circumstances leading to the shooting remain unclear, and the Department of Homeland Security has not yet provided a comment. Local protests erupted following the shooting, marking it as one of several recent confrontations involving ICE agents.
Mayor Watson expressed his frustration, noting the incident mirrored similar events in cities like Chicago and Minneapolis, where immigration enforcement operations have led to violence.
Texas has been actively collaborating with federal authorities on immigration matters. The Texas Department of Public Safety has been coordinating with ICE since President Trump’s presidency began.
Congressman Greg Casar, representing Austin, has called for an independent inquiry into the incident. “Over and over, ICE has shot people and then lied about what happened,” Casar stated, referencing the shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis earlier this year.
Casar further remarked, “We can see the lies with our own eyes. We will demand truth, transparency and accountability.”
This recent event marks at least the second ICE-related shooting in Texas this year. In July, ICE officers in Houston fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican national and father of three, during a traffic stop.
The first known fatality involving immigration agents during President Trump’s second term was Ruben Ray Martinez in South Padre Island, Texas, on March 15, 2025.
This article was originally written by www.npr.org
