NEED TO KNOW
Ronaldo Salgado says his father, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, “did not deserve to die” after he was fatally shot during an ICE operation in Houston
The grieving son recounts his father’s final morning and says he learned of his death through a social media news report
As ICE maintains the shooting was an act of self-defense, Lorenzo’s family continues to call for a full investigation into the incident
The son of the man fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in Houston is speaking out as he calls for a full investigation into the fatal encounter.
During a Wednesday, July 8, press conference, Ronaldo Salgado recounted what he described as his father Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s final morning before he was shot during an immigration enforcement operation. He remembered his father as a hardworking family man whose daily routine revolved around providing for his loved ones.
“For the majority of the last 35 years of his life in the United States, he began the day the same way, and always ended it by coming home, sitting on the porch, eating a hearty meal made by my mother, going to sleep and doing it all over again the next day,” Ronaldo said.
He then walked through the events of Tuesday, July 7, saying his parents woke before dawn, his mother prepared his father’s lunch and coffee, and Lorenzo left home shortly before 6 a.m. to pick up members of his construction crew before heading to a job site.
“Unbeknownst to me, at 6:55, unbeknownst to all of us, my dad had been shot… by ICE agents in unmarked cars,” Ronaldo said.
Ronaldo said his family initially knew only that the incident involved ICE. After unsuccessfully searching for his father’s work van, he came across social media posts about immigration enforcement activity near Canal Street in Houston’s Magnolia Park neighborhood.
When he arrived, he said he found his father’s van but not his father.
“I saw a video posted on Facebook that he had been shot,” Ronaldo said. “I recognized him immediately, not from his appearance, but from his voice, crying for help as he lay on the street, bleeding out.”
After spending hours seeking information from authorities, Ronaldo said he learned through local organizations and elected officials that his father had been taken to a hospital. He said he later discovered his father had died after seeing a news report on social media.
“I learned of my father’s passing from a news report on social media, not the hospital, not law enforcement,” he said. “Had to call my mom right away to give her the terrible news of my dad’s passing before she had to find out the same way I did.”
Ronaldo described his father as a devoted husband, father and construction worker who spent decades working to provide opportunities for his family.
Ronaldo Salgado, son of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, speaks during a news conference on July 8, 2026
Credit: AP Photo/David J. Phillip
“My father was a simple man, a family man, a guy of routine,” he said. “He dedicated his life in the United States to giving his family the American dream.”
He said his father spent decades building homes throughout the Houston area and had recently begun the process of obtaining legal work authorization.
“After nearly 35 years of working to give us the American dream, he made the choice to begin the process of attaining his American dream through a work permit,” Ronaldo said. “We dotted every ‘i,’ crossed every ‘t,’ filled every document, attended every appointment. He was close to obtaining his legal status.”
Ronaldo said he hopes people remember his father for the life he lived rather than the way he died.
“That’s how I want the world to know my father — not as someone who got shot and killed, but as a family man,” he said. “Yesterday, July 7, he did not deserve to die. He did not deserve to be reduced to a headline of ‘Mexican man shot and killed by ICE.’ He deserved to live a quiet life as Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a husband, a father, and a job creator for dozens of men who also wanted the American dream.”
In a statement sent to PEOPLE, ICE claimed officers attempted to stop Lorenzo’s vehicle at about 6:50 a.m. CT during what the agency described as a “targeted enforcement operation.” ICE alleged Lorenzo “rammed” an agency vehicle after refusing multiple verbal commands and said an officer fired “in self-defense” after Lorenzo allegedly attempted to run over the agent.
The agency said he was transported to a hospital, where he later died from his injuries.
A makeshift memorial where Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was killed by an ICE agent
Credit: RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP via Getty
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
Hours after the shooting, Ronaldo also took to Facebook to question ICE’s version of events and urged the public not to circulate images or videos from his father’s final moments.
A day after the shooting, hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Houston’s Magnolia Park neighborhood, marching along Canal Street and leaving flowers and other tributes at a growing memorial where Lorenzo was shot, according to NBC affiliate KPRC. Protesters called for accountability as community members mourned his death.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has also weighed in on the shooting, calling for a thorough investigation and accountability, according to ABC7. Sheinbaum also urged U.S. authorities to ensure that “all the facts are clarified” and that justice is served for Lorenzo and his family.
Read the original article on People