ICE Traffic Stops Spark Political Firestorm Over “Bloodshed” Claims

In July 2025, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents fatally shot two men during routine traffic stops: 25-year-old Joan Sebastian Guerrero, a Colombian national stopped in Maine, and 52-year-old Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican citizen stopped in Houston. ICE officials said the officer who shot Guerrero acted out of “public safety” concerns, while the officer who shot Salgado Araujo claimed “self-defense.” The incidents prompted immediate reactions from senior officials in the Trump administration.

The Independent

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin warned that federal agents are confronting a “more than 1,300% increase in vehicle attacks,” and he singled out Democratic figures—including Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and California Governor Gavin Newsom—for allegedly encouraging the public to “openly defy” ICE.

The Independent

Tom Homan, the administration’s “border czar,” linked the shootings to Democratic outreach, asserting that “the Dems who want to continually attack ICE… tell people to evade them, tell people don’t comply, tell people to resist.”

The Independent

Following the deaths, Mullin issued an internal email urging agents to “prioritize other existing operational methods” and temporarily pause traffic stops. President Donald Trump later overruled the pause on Truth Social, declaring that abandoning traffic stops would “play right into the criminal’s hands.”

The Independent

In February 2025, Ocasio-Cortez distributed a “Know Your Rights” guide advising constituents not to open doors without a warrant and to request agents leave if paperwork was missing. Newsom released a similar fact sheet that warned against “arguing, resisting or obstructing” officers, even when rights are perceived to be violated. These materials have been cited by administration officials as contributing to the alleged rise in attacks on ICE personnel.

The Independent

• “I'm scared to death because assaults with vehicles are sky high. There's been a lot of shootings. I'm scared to death that one of these days, our ICE officers aren't going to be quick enough. The bad guys can be quicker,” — Tom Homan, Fox News interview

The Independent

• “There's still going to be more bloodshed unless they shut their mouth and let ICE enforce the laws that they enacted.” — Tom Homan

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• “We must be strong, tough, and smart, and we CANNOT give up one of I.C.E.’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP! Once we do, we are playing right into the criminal’s hands.” — Donald Trump, Truth Social post

The Independent

• “The Radical Left Dumocrats would like to see this done, but it won’t happen on my watch,” — Donald Trump, Truth Social post

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• “are facing a more than 1,300% increase in vehicle attacks,” — Markwayne Mullin, social-media statement

The Independent