ICE Agent Kills Mexican Man in Houston

A pre-dawn attempt to stop a vehicle in Houston ended with a Mexican citizen fatally shot by a federal immigration officer, authorities say. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement identified the man as Lorenzo Salgado Araujo and said he was killed Tuesday morning in the Magnolia Park neighborhood after an encounter that began around 6:50am, the Houston Chronicle reports. According to an ICE spokesperson, Araujo tried to flee a vehicle stop, refused repeated commands, and drove into an ICE vehicle, at one point allegedly attempting to run over an officer. An agent then fired "in self-defense," according to ICE.

Araujo was taken to Ben Taub Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The FBI's evidence response team processed the site, but both the FBI and Houston police directed questions about the case to the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, the Chronicle reports. The department said Araujo was the subject of a targeted operation because he was in the country illegally. Democratic US Rep. Sylvia Garcia said the shooting happened in her district and called for an independent and impartial investigation, the AP reports. Juan Proaño, CEO of the League of United Latin American Citizens, also called for an independent and transparent investigation. "We don't take DHS at their word at all," he said.