Witnesses dispute ICE account of fatal Houston shooting

Witnesses to the fatal shooting of a Mexican man by immigration agents in Houston offered a different account Friday, asserting the man never attempted to run over the officers. Their lawyer, Hugo Balderas-Ibarra, stated his clients confirmed no ICE agent was directly in front of the vehicle and that shots came from the sides, not the front.

The Department of Homeland Security had previously stated that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents attempted to stop Lorenzo Salgado's vehicle. They claimed Salgado tried to evade arrest and used his car as a weapon, attempting to run over an ICE agent, which prompted the agent to fire in self-defense.

Balderas-Ibarra, representing two of the three individuals detained during the incident, said his clients mentioned police lights were activated by pursuing vehicles and that they cooperated. According to a Washington Post report citing the detainees, ICE vehicles collided with Salgado's truck, and an agent fired from the passenger side, hitting Salgado in the abdomen.

U.S. Representative Sylvia Garcia confirmed she spoke with ICE's acting director, David Venturella. He stated Salgado was not the target, nor was his brother, who was a passenger. The operation was seeking an individual with a final deportation order, whom agents believed had entered the truck. Venturella did not know the name of the person ICE was looking for or which passenger was the target, Garcia added. Salgado had lived in the U.S. for over 35 years, was a businessman, and had children who were citizens.