AUSTIN, Texas — The man shot and wounded by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Austin on Sunday is now being held at an ICE detention facility in Pearsall, sources confirmed Monday.
Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan man, was shot once in the torso during an ICE operation on Austin’s north side. Authorities said Sunday he was hospitalized in serious but stable condition before being released into federal custody.
The family’s lawyer says he was working as a DoorDash delivery driver when he was shot.
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The Department of Homeland Security said Garces Perez was shot following a traffic stop and described him as being in the country illegally with a final order of removal. An immigration attorney representing his family, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said Sunday that she believed he had no criminal history and disputed that he had a final removal order, although she told The Associated Press she did not know his current immigration status.
Austin Police were not involved in the federal operation or the shooting. Texas Department of Public Safety officials said ICE requested assistance during a vehicle pursuit around 12:50 p.m., but the shooting had already occurred by the time state troopers arrived.
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Austin Mayor Kirk Watson called for the Austin Police Department to have a role in the investigation, saying local involvement would provide independent oversight. The Travis County District Attorney’s Office also requested that local police and prosecutors be included and given access to evidence.
Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the FBI, is investigating the shooting. About 100 protesters gathered near the scene Sunday as law enforcement officers continued their investigation.