Another fatal ICE shooting, this time in Houston

By Bethany Blankley
The Center Square

Another fatal immigration enforcement shooting has occurred, this time in Houston.

The victim was a Mexican national in the country illegally, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said. As has been alleged in other instances, he “weaponized his vehicle,” ICE said, attempting to run over an ICE agent during a traffic stop, and was shot in self-defense.

The shooting occurred on Tuesday in the east end of Houston near the intersection of Canal St. and Wayside Dr., KHOU 11 News reported. ICE was conducting a targeted enforcement operation when the Mexican national, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, refused to pull over and rammed his vehicle into an ICE vehicle, ICE said.

ICE Acting Director David Venturella said Araujo “weaponized” his vehicle and tried to run over the agent. The agent fired in self-defense, shooting Araujo in the abdomen. He was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The Department of Homeland Security’s Inspector General Office is investigating the officer-involved shooting. The FBI-Houston Office is also investigating the alleged assault of a federal law enforcement officer.

Araujo’s son, Ronaldo Salgado, said in a Facebook post that his father was “a hardworking Mexican man” who has been in the U.S. “for nearly 35 years, working in construction to provide for myself, my two brothers, and my mother.” He said he was “in the process of obtaining his work permit through the legal process.” ICE says he was in the country illegally. It is unclear if he had been living in the U.S. illegally for 35 years.

Salgado also said his “father did not deserve this” and he would be holding a news conference with the support of LULAC and the Greater Coalition for Justice in Houston. LULAC has long advocated for open borders and has sued the state over various border security, immigration and election security issues over the years.

Unlike Minneapolis or other Democratic-led cities, no protests or riots have occurred in Houston in response to this or other officer-involved shootings.

This is not the first federal immigration officer-involved shooting resulting in death in Texas.

In March 2025, a U.S. citizen on South Padre Island, Ruben Ray Martinez of San Antonio, was shot and killed during a targeted immigration enforcement operation. In this case, Martinez also reportedly attempted to run over law enforcement when a Homeland Security Investigations special agent fired in self-defense, ICE said.

ICE said Martinez “intentionally ran over a Homeland Security Investigation special agent resulting in him being on the hood of the vehicle. Upon witnessing this, another agent fired defensive shots to protect himself, his fellow agents, and the general public.”

One year later this March, a grand jury in Cameron County declined charges against the special agent, ruling the shooting was justified.

In response to the Houston shooting Mi Familia Vota Texas State Director Dayana Iza and others are questioning ICE’s account. She told The Center Square in an emailed statement, “Too often, the initial accounts released by ICE and DHS after critical incidents have later been contradicted by video evidence or other facts, including in cases involving U.S. citizens. That history makes immediate transparency essential to maintaining public trust.” The organization focuses on mobilizing “Latino power through year-round activation of the electorate and investment in local infrastructure.”

Iza also said that at least 52 people have died in ICE custody under the second Trump administration and called for transparency.

Neither Araujo nor Martinez were in ICE custody.

Official ICE reports of “in-custody alien deaths” are reported to Congress, nongovernmental organization stakeholders and published in news statements. In most cases, the foreign nationals have died while receiving medical care, often funded by U.S. taxpayers. While in custody and receiving medical care, ICE says it contacts their home country consulates, next of kin or other designated contacts.

Two recent deaths in south Texas occurred while foreign nationals were receiving medical care from physicians.

Last month, an 85-year-old “illegal alien” from Germany died in ICE custody while receiving medical care at the Valley Baptist Medical Center in Harlingen, ICE announced. This was after he’d been placed in a rehabilitation and assisted living center and was later transferred to the medical center “for dementia concerns in addition to his history of high blood pressure, cognitive impairment, and ulcers.” He died after receiving medical care for seven months.

Also in June, a 63-year-old “criminal illegal alien” from Mexico died in ICE custody at the Webb County Detention Center, where he was receiving medical care.