ICE Shooting of Venezuelan Delivery Driver Wilber Garcés Pérez in Austin

During a traffic stop in Austin, federal immigration officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) shot 28-year-old Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, a Venezuelan man making a DoorDash delivery. Video released by Austin police shows an ICE SUV colliding with Pérez’s car, an officer exiting the vehicle, and firing a single round that lodged between his shoulder blades. Austin police arrived shortly after the discharge, provided first aid, and transported Pérez to a local hospital.

The Guardian

After the shooting, Pérez was taken to the hospital on Sunday, where he remained for several days. He now requires surgery to remove the bullet and avoid permanent loss of feeling on the left side of his body, according to his supporters and his attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch. Pérez has been held in federal immigration detention for five days, reportedly in isolation and without access to his own footage of the incident. A timeline for any surgical procedure has not been provided.

The Guardian

A federal judge has ordered Pérez to appear at a hearing next week, where a habeas corpus petition seeking his release will be considered. The local district attorney, Austin police, and Department of Homeland Security (DHS)—working with the FBI—have each launched investigations into the shooting. The Texas attorney general has filed a letter requesting that Pérez remain in the United States as a material witness. Pérez’s legal team has also applied for a visa on the basis that he is a victim of violent crime by ICE.

The Guardian

Democratic Congressman Greg Casar, who visited Pérez in a wheelchair, urged ICE to expedite any necessary surgery and warned that the agency must take Pérez’s medical care “extremely seriously.” City officials, including Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, have criticized ICE’s continued traffic stops and random questioning of immigrants, calling for an end to the practice.

The Guardian

• “Surgery, of course, we all know, has its benefits and risks. But if Wilber and his wife decide that he needs to go through a surgery, then ICE needs to expedite his care,” — Greg Casar

The Guardian