ICE agent shoots and wounds man in Austin, Texas, officials say
The man was taken to a hospital in serious but stable condition, and DHS said ICE is leading the investigation with the FBI's help.
- On Sunday, September 20, 2026, a federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot and wounded 28-year-old Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a Venezuelan national, in North Austin. Perez was transported to a hospital in serious but stable condition.
- The shooting occurred amid a recent surge of ICE enforcement operations in Austin, where federal immigration arrests reached nearly 51,000 in August under President Donald Trump, marking a third consecutive monthly high.
- Accounts of the encounter conflict; Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis cites a brief foot pursuit, while Council Member Mike Siegel alleges the agent rammed the Toyota Corolla and fired five times. Physical evidence shows two bullet holes in the vehicle.
- Austin Mayor Kirk Watson and U.S. Rep. Greg Casar demanded an independent investigation and body camera footage release. Watson stated he is "angry" but "not surprised," insisting "Austinites have a right to know what happened."
- This incident joins a growing list of controversial encounters involving federal agents; Democratic lawmakers noted at least 22 shootings since Trump returned to office, with six fatal. Critics continue pressing for federal accountability and oversight.
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597 Articles
Austin Mayor Called ICE Dangerous Before Learning What DHS Knew About the Man They Shot
Antifa gunmen lured ICE agents into an ambush with fireworks at a Texas detention center last Fourth of July, then opened fire with rifles. Today an ICE agent shot a man in Austin, and the city's Democrats blamed the officer instantly. What Mayor Kirk Watson left out is what DHS sources say about the man […]
The man, who remains in federal custody, claims that the shell was lodged near his spinal cord after the shooting.
Daily Record
Man shot by ICE officer is detained in Texas with a bullet still in his back, attorney says
The attorney for a Venezuelan man shot by a federal immigration officer in Texas says he is being held at a detention center after being released from a hospital with a bullet still in his back. Immigration Attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch…
'It's cruel': Mayor steps in after lawyer says wife kept in dark following ICE shooting
The attorney stated in a later video that Austin Mayor Kirk Watson showed up at the hospital Sunday night and was able to get information for the family that the man was in stable condition.
ICE Shoots Venezuelan Man With Removal Order in Austin
An ICE officer shot a 28-year-old Venezuelan man during an enforcement operation in Austin, Texas, and the man had entered the country during the Biden administration and already had a judge's order sending him home. The shooting happened on the afternoon of September 20 on Austin's north side, under a highway overpass, when Immigration and […]
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