An officer from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and a Honduran man were injured during a shooting incident that took place during a traffic stop near Phoenix, Arizona, early Wednesday morning.
The event happened around 4 a.m. when ICE agents pulled over Jose Garcia Sorto on Interstate 17 in northern Phoenix. According to reports, the driver initially complied but then attempted to flee as officers approached his vehicle.
It’s not entirely clear why Garcia-Sorto was stopped in the first place. Officials from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) noted that as an officer approached, the vehicle suddenly accelerated. Fearing for his safety, the officer fired his weapon twice, hitting the vehicle.
Garcia-Sorto was taken to a hospital and is reportedly in stable condition.
The officer involved in the shooting was also hospitalized, but details about his injuries have not yet been disclosed.
Garcia-Sorto’s wife, Anahi, recounted to local media that he was heading to work at the time. She expressed her distress after seeing news of the incident, indicating that she always waits for him at home. “I was really, really hurt to find out that he wasn’t here yesterday,” she shared.
Anahi mentioned that the family learned about the shooting through the news and felt left in the dark by authorities, who haven’t provided them with much information. “They (law enforcement) don’t want to tell me anything,” she said, adding that ICE officials were not allowing her to speak with her husband.
Interestingly, Anahi did acknowledge that they were in the U.S. illegally. However, she also mentioned that she is hopeful for the ICE agents, saying, “What they are doing is bad, but I don’t wish anything bad on them, because I’m not the God who judges them. I pray for them.”
Currently, the FBI is looking into the circumstances surrounding the shooting. Meanwhile, the exit ramp from Dove Valley Road that was closed during the investigation has since reopened.
DHS has not yet responded to requests for comments regarding the situation.
