Three men who say they witnessed the shooting say through their lawyers that ICE’s account of what happened to Lorenzo Salgado Araujo is “false.”
Houston Mayor condemns ICE killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo
Houston Mayor John Whitmire said the city is pursuing an independent investigation into the killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by ICE.
Three men who say they witnessed the fatal shooting of a Mexican man by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are speaking out about what they witnessed, calling the authorities’ version of what happened “completely false.”
Jose Trinidad Rojas, Daniel Tirado Pantoja, and Victor Salgado said on Friday, July 10, that they witnessed the shooting death of their colleague Lorenzo Salgado Araujo on July 7 in Houston. Mr. Salgado and Mr. Salgado Araujo are also brothers.
After the shooting, immigration authorities said they had targeted Salgado Araujo, 52, because they mistook him for someone else. Investigators said he tried to “weaponize his car” against investigators and was shot by them.
But Rojas, Tirado and Salgado say that’s a mistake. Contrary to ICE’s account, there were no ICE agents in front of Salgado Araujo’s white van, the man’s lawyer, Hugo Balderas Ibarra, said at a press conference Friday.
“I can say with confidence that my client’s version of events is very different from what ICE officials are saying,” Balderas-Ibarra told reporters. “All three of my clients reiterated that at no time did the agent stand in front of the vehicle or did the agent ever put the agent in any dangerous position.”
Balderas-Ibarra added: “That’s completely false.”
Balderas Ibarra, speaking to his client, said the deputy fired at Salgado Araujo from the side of the van.
USA TODAY has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment on the account shared by Balderas-Ibarra and whether the operative in the shooting remains on active duty.
There is no clear video of the shooting. Rep. Sylvia Garcia (D-Texas) said the agents involved were not wearing body cameras and their cars did not have dashboard cameras.
An ICE spokesperson said in a previous statement that Salgado Araujo “refused to comply with multiple verbal commands and weaponized his vehicle in an attempt to run over ICE law enforcement officers.”
“To protect himself, his fellow officers, and the public, the officer fired his weapon in self-defense,” they said.
Balderas-Ibarra and many other lawmakers criticized the statement as eerily similar to what authorities have released in response to other mass shootings, including the January 2025 shootings of Renee Good in Minneapolis and Marimar Martinez in Chicago.
The Houston-based attorney said he fears his client will be forced to sign deportation papers to keep him from testifying in court about what happened.
“Given the scale of this case and the impact it will have, my client may be coerced into signing a document to sign a voluntary removal,” Balderas-Ibarra said, referring to tactics reported in ICE facilities across the country. “It’s very important that we maintain the integrity of this investigation. If they’re deported, that’s all going to matter.”
Salgado Araujo’s family is also calling for the release of the three men. The family believes the trio’s story may be the only way to get to the truth about what happened.
ICE said the agency’s inspector general is investigating the shooting and that FBI agents in Houston are investigating “a possible assault on a federal law enforcement officer.”
The testimony shared by attorneys for three men in ICE custody in Texas comes as Houston Mayor John Whitmore calls for an independent investigation into the shooting.
“I served as Austin’s chief of criminal justice for 30 years and was involved in numerous investigations and oversight reviews of police operations,” Whitmore said Friday. “Nothing is worse than what ICE brought into Houston about 80 hours ago, Tuesday morning.”
He went on to say that Salgado Araujo “was chased by an unmarked vehicle and shot dead before he could even identify himself as a Houstonian.”
Whitmore promised to bring the full force of the city’s investigative powers into the case.
