Austin American-Statesman/Hearst Newspapers / Contributor
An Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent reportedly shot Wilber Rafael Garcs Perez, a DoorDash delivery driver, on Sunday, September 20.
An ICE agent shot a DoorDash delivery driver on Sunday as he worked, according to CBS News.
According to Garcs Perez’s lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, he was shot below his neck, in his back, per NewsNation. ICE agents were reportedly looking for the man because they had a deportation order. Wilber is reportedly legally married to a woman with legal status in the U.S., per NPR. The shooting occurred just before 1 p.m. at Anderson Square and Research Boulevard under an overpass.
In addition, his lawyer said that the 28-year-old called his wife right after the shooting to say he’d been shot.
“Even if he did have a final order of removal, he did not deserve to be shot in the back of the neck,” Lincoln-Goldfinch said, adding he “was shot below his neck in his back.”
Lincoln-GoldfinchtoldNPR that she and Wilber’s wife were escorted off the property at the Dell Seton Medical Center in Austin while trying to find information about his health status.
“We were told that he was at this hospital, so we came back, and they have run us off the property,” she said. “We have been informed that if he’s in ICE custody, they will decline to confirm that he’s here. And no one has updated her about his status.”
Furthermore, she told NBC News that they were lied to and treated like trespassers.
“We not only were lied to and told that he wasnt there, but we were thrown off the hospital grounds by several officers who treated us as trespassers,” Lincoln-Goldfinch added. “We are deeply concerned that his wife and family have not been permitted to see him and have not received a meaningful update regarding his current condition or whereabouts…. No one has told me or Wilbers wife what the treatment was or how hes doing, and I feel very confident he is in a lot of pain right now as we speak.”
Congressman Greg Casar (D-Texas) called for an independent investigation into the ICE shooting on X.
“The horror has come to our city,” he wrote on X. “ICE has shot a person in Austin this morning. As the facts emerge, I am demanding a full, independent investigation, immediate release of the body camera footage, and accountability for any ICE officer who broke the law. Over and over, ICE has shot people and then lied about what happened. We can see the lies with our own eyes. We will demand truth, transparency and accountability.”
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson reportedly noted that the hospital administrator revealed that Wilber was released into ICE custody.
“A person being shot on the streets of Austin by someone purporting to be law enforcement, particularly when its ICE, is something that causes me to be unhappy and angry, said Watson at a subsequent news conference, per NBC News. “While Im unhappy and Im angry about it, Im not surprised at all.”
On Monday, September 21, the Department of Homeland Security shared a statement on X following the shooting. Additionally, the statement referred to Wilber as “an illegal alien.” Furthermore, the statement claims that Wilber is in federal custody and in “stable” condition.
“Homeland Security Investigations, with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, is leading the investigation into the officer involved shooting of an illegal alien from Venezuela, who illegally entered our country under the Biden administration and had a final order of removal, during a law enforcement operation today in Austin, TX,” it states. “The illegal aliens condition is stable, and he is in federal custody pending removal. This is a developing situation, and we will update the public when more information becomes available.”
According to CNN, two teenagers were recently beaten by ICE in Alamo, Texas. The boys were reportedly on their way to enlist in the Marines.
