On Sunday, a large group of protesters armed with foreign flags and leftist banners gathered in North Austin after a nonfatal shooting incident involving a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer and a Venezuelan national.
As anti-ICE sentiments were being voiced by various Democratic officials, including Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, tensions escalated and the protesters became violent, prompting a response from the Texas Department of Public Safety.
The shooting
The incident occurred shortly before 1 p.m. on Sunday in the vicinity of Anderson Square.
According to Austin-Travis County EMS, the man who was shot—identified by his immigration attorney as 28-year-old Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a Venezuelan national who was purportedly working as a DoorDash driver—was reported to have stable vital signs but was taken to Dell Seton Medical Center in “serious condition.”
Footage streamed live around the time of the shooting and later reviewed shows the chaotic moment, featuring screeching tires followed by a collision between Perez’s damaged Corolla and an ICE officer’s SUV.
In another video shared by ABC News, Perez can be heard in Spanish claiming that he was shot for not stopping in time.
Homeland Security Investigations is now looking into the details of the shooting, with assistance from the FBI.
The Department of Homeland Security stated that the individual shot was an “illegal alien from Venezuela” who entered the U.S. unlawfully during the Biden administration and had a final order of removal prior to the law enforcement operation in Austin.
Following medical treatment, Perez was placed in ICE custody.
The Democratic response
After the shooting, Mayor Kirk Watson expressed his anger and disappointment over the situation, asserting that it was not an isolated incident and criticized ICE’s conduct, referring to it as “rogue.”
Texas Rep. Greg Casar also took the opportunity to condemn ICE, calling it a “terrorizing” entity in the country and expressing solidarity with peaceful protests against its actions.
Rep. Joaquin Castro pointed fingers at former President Trump and Governor Abbott for enabling ICE’s perceived threats to community safety.
Rep. Delia Ramirez dubbed the DHS as a “major threat” to public safety and fervently called for the dismantling of ICE.
While not much information was available, Texas state Rep. Vikki Goodwin remarked that the violence surrounding ICE activities must cease.
Restoring order
As online criticism of ICE surged, a crowd of demonstrators gathered at the scene of the shooting, brandishing signs with messages like, “Stop ICE murder,” “Abolish ICE,” among others.
The mood of the protest became increasingly tumultuous, with protesters hurling rocks and other items at law enforcement while repeatedly trying to breach barricades set up around the shooting site. In response, the Texas Department of Public Safety deployed pepper balls to disperse the crowd as Austin police were on standby.
After using tear gas and detaining some individuals, law enforcement managed to clear the area, which was deemed an unlawful assembly, and departed the scene around 11 p.m.
Inquiries made to the Texas Department of Public Safety and the DHS for comments have yet to receive a response.
