ICE agent shoots Venezuelan food delivery driver in Austin, Texas

An ICE officer shot and seriously wounded a Venezuelan asylum seeker delivering food in Austin, Texas. The man remains in federal custody with a bullet still lodged in his back.

ICE officer shoots Venezuelan DoorDash driver during vehicle pursuit in North Austin

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and seriously wounded a Venezuelan man on Sunday afternoon while he was making a food delivery in Austin, Texas, according to NBC News. The man, identified by his immigration attorney as Wilber Rafael Garcés Perez, 28, was struck in the torso and taken to hospital.

Austin-Travis County EMS Chief Robert Luckritz confirmed at a news conference that Garcés Perez was in "serious but stable condition" after the shooting, which occurred around 1 p.m. in North Austin. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said late Sunday that he was stable and in federal custody pending removal from the United States.

Vehicle pursuit preceded the shooting

The Texas Department of Public Safety said its agency received a request for assistance from ICE involving a vehicle pursuit of a blue Toyota Corolla. The shooting took place before DPS troopers arrived on the scene. Once they arrived, troopers assisted in providing medical treatment to the driver of the Corolla.

A social media video, verified by NBC News, captures the sound of tyres screeching followed by a person exiting a dark-coloured SUV as a blue sedan is stopped alongside it. At least three gunshots are heard as the individual approaches and runs toward the sedan. The footage shows the person standing next to the driver's side door as the vehicle stops at an intersection. The sedan also appears to have damage on the passenger side.

Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis confirmed that a "small foot pursuit" had occurred and that city investigators were on the scene. She added that she was in contact with Homeland Security Investigations and other state law enforcement agencies. Austin Mayor Kirk Watson stated that the city's police department was not involved in the incident.

Asylum seeker, DoorDash driver, no criminal history

Immigration attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch identified Garcés Perez as an asylum seeker who had entered the country through a parole programme. A senior administration official told NBC News on Monday that Garcés Perez had no criminal history beyond being present in the country without authorisation.

DHS said he had entered the country illegally under the Biden administration and had a final order of removal. The department added that Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the FBI, would lead the investigation into the shooting.

Garcés Perez was employed as a DoorDash driver. A company spokesperson confirmed in an email that he was actively making a delivery at the time of the incident, adding that DoorDash is investigating and would not release further details "at this time."

Bullet still lodged in back; family denied access

Lincoln-Goldfinch told NBC News on Monday morning that Garcés Perez was being held at the South Texas ICE Processing Center in Pearsall, Texas. According to her office, a bullet remained lodged in his back. Garcés Perez told his attorney that he had not been given pain medication and was being interrogated.

His wife, who holds legal status, has not been permitted to speak with him since the shooting. Lincoln-Goldfinch described the moment Garcés Perez called his wife immediately after being shot.

"Today at 12:30, Wilber called his wife to tell her that he had been shot," Lincoln-Goldfinch said in an interview late Sunday. "And he was yelling in agony, and the call cut off. That was all she knew."

Lincoln-Goldfinch said she and the man's wife went to the hospital to obtain information on his condition but were removed from the premises by officers. "We not only were lied to and told that he wasn't there, but we were thrown off the hospital grounds by several officers who treated us as trespassers," she said.

Austin Mayor Kirk Watson later intervened, prompting a hospital administrator at Dell Seton Medical Center at The University of Texas to contact Lincoln-Goldfinch and confirm that Garcés Perez had been released to ICE. The hospital did not respond to a request for comment.

"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," Lincoln-Goldfinch said in a statement.

Calls for investigation and body camera footage

DHS has not provided information on whether the ICE agent involved was wearing a body camera or whether Garcés Perez was the intended target of a planned operation.

U.S. Representative Greg Casar, Democrat of Texas, demanded an independent investigation, the release of any body camera footage, and "accountability for any ICE officer who broke the law." In a post on X, Casar wrote: "Over and over, ICE has shot people and then lied about what happened. We can see the lies with our own eyes. We will demand truth, transparency and accountability."

Mayor Watson expressed frustration at the news conference. "A person being shot on the streets of Austin by someone purporting to be law enforcement, particularly when it's ICE, is something that causes me to be unhappy and angry," he said. "While I'm unhappy and I'm angry about it, I'm not surprised at all."

The White House referred NBC News to the Department of Homeland Security for comment. DHS did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Lincoln-Goldfinch's statements regarding the bullet or the denial of pain medication.

Shooting comes amid record ICE enforcement

The incident coincides with a significant escalation in ICE enforcement activity across the United States. The agency recorded more than 50,000 arrests per month for the first time in its history in both July and August, according to NBC News.

Lincoln-Goldfinch said locating Garcés Perez and verifying his medical condition remains her immediate priority. "No one has told me or Wilber's wife what the treatment was or how he's doing," she said, "and I feel very confident he is in a lot of pain right now as we speak."

Source: Google News MT