ICE Officer Kills Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston After Vehicle Ram Attempt

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston during an attempted traffic stop as part of a targeted enforcement operation, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

DHS said Salgado Araujo rammed an ICE law enforcement vehicle, refused to follow multiple verbal commands, and “weaponized his vehicle in an attempt to run over an ICE law enforcement officer,” prompting the officer to fire in self-defense.

CBC

The shooting happened at about 6:50 a.m. Tuesday in Houston’s East End near Canal Street and Wayside Drive, and Salgado Araujo was taken to a hospital where he died.

FBI officials said they sent an evidence response team to process the scene and were investigating a potential assault on a federal law enforcement officer, while DHS said the man was living in the country without legal permission.

Houston leaders and the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) called for an independent investigation after the fatal shooting, with Congressman Christian Menefee saying, “I fully support an independent and transparent investigation into this shooting.”

LULAC officials questioned ICE’s account that Salgado Araujo used his vehicle to ram law enforcement vehicles and attempted to run over an agent, and LULAC National Vice President for the Southwest Lupe Torres said, “We need the facts.”

Click2Houston

The Houston Police Department said it was not involved, and a spokesperson for Houston Mayor John Whitmire said the incident stemmed from “a federal operation,” while Jodi Silva said “to my understanding, no” when asked if police were investigating.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia said ICE released an initial account but that the information needs to be independently verified and investigated, adding that “All available footage, communications, and other evidence should be preserved and reviewed as part of a full and impartial investigation.”

The Houston killing was framed by some outlets as part of a broader series of deadly federal shootings tied to immigration enforcement, with Univision citing The Trace’s count of “28 incidents of this type, included 14 tiroteos” up to 7 de enero.

Univision also described the Minneapolis shooting in which an ICE agent killed a woman, and it reported that local authorities rejected the version of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that it was self-defense.

In the same reporting stream, NBC News quoted LULAC comparing Tuesday’s incident to prior deaths, with Roman Palomares telling reporters, “We have seen a pattern of ICE involvement in shootings and excessive use of force.”

NBC News said LULAC CEO Juan Proaño argued that the government’s account in Minneapolis “fell apart moments after the video was released,” and he said, “Today, in Houston, we’re being handed the same story about Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in almost the same exact words.”