Minnesota officials charge ICE agent in shooting of Venezuelan immigrant

MINNEAPOLIS - A US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent was charged with assault by Minnesota authorities for allegedly shooting a Venezuelan man and then lying about the confrontation.

Christian Castro, an ICE agent deployed during a federal immigration crackdown in the state, was charged with four counts of second-degree assault related to the non-fatal Jan 14 shooting, as well as one count of falsely reporting a crime, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said on May 18.

Castro is the second agent to face state charges tied to Operation Metro Surge in December and January, which led to sometimes violent clashes between federal authorities, suspected migrants and protesters. Two US citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, were fatally shot in Minneapolis, prompting a scaling back of the federal presence in the city.

At the time of the confrontation involving Castro, ICE and the Department of Homeland Security said an agent fired in self defence after two men, Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis and Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna, used a broom handle and snow shovel to attack pursuing agents who were trying to arrest them.

The men, both from Venezuela, were initially charged with assaulting federal agents. However, the charges were dismissed after a prosecutor told a judge that “newly discovered evidence” was “materially inconsistent” with the criminal complaint. A separate federal probe was opened to determine if the agents, including Castro, lied under oath.

In a statement, ICE said the charges “by Minnesota sanctuary politicians are unlawful and nothing more than a political stunt”.

At the same time, ICE said lying under oath is a crime and that federal prosecutors are reviewing statements by the agents. “Upon conclusion of the investigation, the officers may face disciplinary action, including termination of employment, as well as potential criminal prosecution,” the agency said.

The Trump administration has repeatedly defended the actions of thousands of agents that have been deployed to Minnesota and elsewhere as part of the crackdown on immigration enforcement.

In April, Ms Moriarty’s office charged ICE agent Gregory Morgan with two counts of second-degree assault after being accused of waiving his weapon at two motorists in February. Arrest warrants have been issued for Morgan and Castro, Ms Moriarty said on May 18, adding that she’s confident both men will be brought back to Minneapolis “to start this process”.

Ms Moriarty and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said state authorities continue to investigate the killings of Good and Pretti, but federal authorities have declined to share evidence collected in either case.

Since the Minnesota operations ended, several top DHS official have been fired or retired.

Former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem was pushed out in March amid questions about agency operations and spending. In April, acting ICE Director Todd Lyons announced he’ll retire at the end of May, and earlier this month, US Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks announced his immediate retirement.

Former Border Patrol at-large commander Gregory Bovino, who became the face of interior immigration operations including in Minnesota, was removed from that role in March and has since retired. BLOOMBERG