Man seriously injured in ICE shooting in Austin, Texas
A man was seriously injured in a shooting involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Austin, Texas, local officials said.
The shooting happened on Sunday morning in North Austin. Austin-Travis County EMS Chief Robert Luckritz said crews responded to a reported shooting in the 8000 block of Anderson Square.
Medics arrived within three and a half minutes and found a man suffering from a gunshot wound, Luckritz said. He was taken to a local trauma center in serious but stable condition.
Limon Verde, a local reporter, told CBS Austin that witness video sent to him showed an ICE SUV attempting to block the man’s vehicle. He said the man tried to drive away as agents approached, and they began shooting.
Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said she had heard a different account involving a “small” foot pursuit. The sequence of events remains unclear.
A blue Toyota Corolla at the scene had bullet holes and damage to its passenger-side door. Separate footage posted by Beto Luna showed the man inside the vehicle after the shooting. He appeared to speak to the person recording, but his words were unclear.
Chief Davis said the department’s special investigation unit, which investigates officer-involved shootings, was at the scene and would work alongside the Texas Rangers. City Council Member Mike Siegel had earlier told KVUE that the shooting was under federal investigation.
Davis said she had also spoken with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) about cooperation with the inquiry.
“There’s not a lot of facts I can give you,” Davis said in a briefing by city officials. “The City of Austin deserves answers on what occurred.”
“I’m not surprised at all. It’s happened in other cities,” Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said. “With the nature of ICE and the way ICE is doing their business these days, and the chaos that we see it performing and fomenting, there’s no reason to be surprised by it.”
U.S. Representative Greg Casar called for an independent investigation, the immediate release of body camera footage and “accountability for any ICE officer who broke the law.”
As of 6 p.m. ET, neither ICE nor the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had publicly commented on the circumstances of the shooting.
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
