A Venezuelan man shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Austin is now being held at an ICE detention center in Texas with a bullet still lodged near his spine, according to his attorney.
Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, spoke by phone during a Monday news conference and said doctors did not remove the bullet because of its location. His attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said Perez was released from the hospital later Sunday and taken into ICE custody.
Attorney Describes Traffic Encounter Before Shooting
Lincoln-Goldfinch told reporters that Perez was making a DoorDash delivery Sunday when his car was “sideswiped” twice by ICE officers in an unmarked truck.
Perez said officers did not ask him to stop or activate flashing lights until after the alleged sideswipes. He said he made a U-turn and was trying to park when officers rammed his car and shot him in the back of the neck.
“I am not doing well due to the gunshot wound, and I have not received the medical attention that I require,” Perez said in Spanish, according to a translation provided during the news conference by a member of his attorney’s staff.
DHS Says Man Had Final Removal Order
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, has released limited information about the shooting and has not publicly said what led to it.
In a statement early Monday, DHS said it was investigating the shooting of a Venezuelan man who was in the U.S. illegally and “had a final order of removal.” The department did not immediately respond to email requests for further comment, according to the source report.
Lincoln-Goldfinch said Perez is being held at the South Texas ICE Processing Center in Pearsall, about 130 miles southwest of Austin. She also said Perez told her in an earlier phone call that he was being interrogated.
Asylum Claim and Missed Hearing
According to Lincoln-Goldfinch, Perez entered the United States in 2024 after using CBP One, a Biden-era program that allowed migrants to set appointments with U.S. authorities to be considered for asylum. President Donald Trump ended the program on his first day in office.
Perez’s attorneys said he was an asylum seeker and had a work permit. Lincoln-Goldfinch said a judge issued a deportation order after Perez missed an immigration court hearing because the notice was sent to a former address.
“Not that being out of status would justify any of this at all,” Lincoln-Goldfinch wrote in a social media post about the shooting.
Calls for Outside Review
The shooting occurred as ICE enforcement has increased during Trump’s second term. ICE reported more than 50,000 monthly arrests in both July and August, a first for the agency, according to the source report.
At Monday’s news conference, local advocates, leaders of the League of United Latin American Citizens, and two Democratic congressmen representing parts of Austin called for an independent body to review ICE use-of-force incidents and refer suspected crimes to prosecutors.
They also urged Congress to ban ICE officers from making traffic stops, arguing that officers are undertrained and too quick to use violence.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, a Democrat, has said local police should have a role in investigating the shooting and that it would not be appropriate for ICE to investigate the incident on its own.
Near the scene Monday, an area under an overpass where protesters had gathered the day before was quiet. The source report described anti-ICE graffiti, discarded police tape, candles, flowers, and a sign reading “Justice for Wilber.”
This article is based on reporting adapted from the Associated Press and statements attributed in the source material.
