{"id":371195,"date":"2026-07-13T15:08:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T15:08:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/371195\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T15:08:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T15:08:09","slug":"houston-mourns-man-killed-by-ice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/371195\/","title":{"rendered":"Houston mourns man killed by ICE"},"content":{"rendered":"

Real journalists wrote and edited this (not AI)\u2014independent, community-driven journalism survives because you back it. Donate<\/a> to sustain Prism\u2019s mission and the humans behind it.<\/p>\n

Houston is mourning the killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, the latest of multiple people across the U.S to be fatally shot by federal immigration agents<\/a> or to die in immigration detention<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On the morning of July 7, Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) agents in an unmarked car chased and stopped the 52-year-old father of three before shooting him in the abdomen. Salgado Araujo was transported to a hospital where he died of his wounds.<\/p>\n

\u201cA person\u2019s legal status should not determine the right to live,\u201d Ronaldo Salgado, Salgado Araujo\u2019s eldest son, told Prism.<\/p>\n

He said his father was a humble man who enjoyed the simple things in life.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe just wanted to enjoy life like anyone else. He wanted to come home, eat a meal made by my mom, play with the dog, listen to music, maybe watch videos at very high volume. You know, just be a dad,\u201d Ronaldo Salgado said. \u201cHe did not deserve any of this.\u201d<\/p>\n

While federal authorities claimed that Salgado Araujo attempted to run over agents, three passengers in his car, who were detained by ICE, said that was false<\/a>. The Department of Homeland Security previously also accused Renee Good<\/a>, who was shot dead by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis in January, of attempting to run over officers, though that account did not match video evidence of the incident.<\/p>\n

After initially saying the city had no jurisdiction<\/a> in the incident, Houston Mayor John Whitmire said Friday that he was directing Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz to be \u201cproactive\u201d in investigating Salgado Araujo\u2019s shooting. Diaz, however, maintained that the city had no legal authority or access to evidence.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare announced on Thursday<\/a> that his office would investigate the killing, despite difficulty gaining access to federal evidence. Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum also announced that she will request criminal charges<\/a> over ICE\u2019s killing of Salgado Araujo and 16 other Mexicans.<\/p>\n

Norma Gonzalez, Latine community navigator for the immigrant justice organization Woori Juntos<\/a>, was skeptical of Whitmire\u2019s reconsideration.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s just to save face,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cI don\u2019t think that\u2019s how he truly feels, and I don\u2019t think that he\u2019s going to do anything moving forward to ensure that situations like this don\u2019t happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gonzalez was one of many advocates who pressured the city of Houston to stop collaborating with ICE. After months of Whitmire denying that local police were involved with federal immigration enforcement, the Houston Chronicle uncovered several instances<\/a> of Houston police officers transporting individuals to ICE custody.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the mayor to act like he hasn\u2019t had the opportunity to protect our communities\u2014to actually ensure that we\u2019re safe and that we\u2019re not hunted down\u2014that opportunity has been happening for over a year,\u201d Gonzalez said.<\/p>\n

Ronaldo Salgado said he was glad Whitmire reconsidered his decision about a local investigation into his father\u2019s killing, but that he was focused on caring for his family.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just thankful for Mayor Whitmire to allow me the opportunity to take my mom [to the location of the shooting], securing the street for a short period of time for my mom to pay her respects and to see the huge outgrowing of support, because she hadn\u2019t seen anything like that before,\u201d Salgado said.<\/p>\n

Over the course of a week, thousands of residents attended protests and vigils at the site of killing in Houston\u2019s East End. A fundraiser<\/a> supporting the family\u2019s funeral, education, and living expenses has garnered massive support.<\/p>\n

The family of Daniel Tirado Pantoja, one of the passengers in Salgado Araujo\u2019s car who was heading to work at a housing construction site, is seeking financial support<\/a> to navigate the emotional and financial impact of his detainment.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s important that we are aware of the communities that we live in and who we are around, and become neighborly,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cAsk them if they need help because people are afraid to have their own transportation right now. They\u2019re afraid to drive their cars because they might get stopped. Ask them if you can pick something up for them. Also, become a part of your local ICE watch group.\u201d<\/p>\n

Several organizations are also demanding<\/a> that the city of Houston take a more bold approach toward attaining answers for the Salgado family. Immigrating Youth Texas, announced a mass protest<\/a> for July 19. Several restaurants and a local run club are hosting fundraisers.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy father was proud of my brothers and I for becoming first-gen Americans, and he urged us to continue obtaining an education and to fight for what\u2019s right,\u201d Ronaldo Salgado said. \u201cI think my dad would be very proud of all the young people who have stepped up and used their words in order to try to call and create change, mainly because my dad wasn\u2019t necessarily free to voice his opinions because of fear of any retaliation.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Gonzalez, the power to change this cycle of harm rests with everyday people.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is going to keep happening as long as we allow it to keep happening,\u201d they said. \u201cReading about it, being concerned about it is going to [do] nothing. It\u2019s as useless as thoughts and prayers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Editorial Team:
Sahar Fatima, Lead Editor
Lara Witt, Top Editor
Rashmee Kumar, Copy Editor<\/p>\n

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