ICE agent Christian Castro charged with lying about shooting Venezuelan man

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent has been charged with lying about a non‑fatal shooting of a Venezuelan migrant in Minnesota. Christian Castro, who has not yet been taken into custody, faces a six‑count federal indictment that stems from an incident on 14 January. The indictment accuses him of shooting a migrant who survived the attack, and of falsely reporting the circumstances of the event. The case is now a federal matter, with separate state charges of assault and false reporting filed in Minnesota.

The case is part of a larger crackdown on illegal immigration in the Midwest that has drawn national attention. ICE deployed thousands of officers to the region as part of Operation Metro Surge, a campaign that sparked protests and led to the deaths of two U.S. citizens during confrontations with agents. The Minnesota investigation followed surveillance footage that contradicted the agents’ self‑defence narrative. The footage showed Castro firing through a closed door, striking a victim in the leg and sending the bullet through a child’s room wall. The incident highlights the tensions between federal enforcement and local communities.

Investigators allege that Castro fired his weapon while the door was shut, even though people had just entered the home. The bullet struck a migrant in the leg, not a fatal injury, but the act of shooting through a closed door is a serious violation of protocol. Minnesota prosecutors charged the agent with assault and false reporting. In February, ICE placed two agents on administrative leave after the agency said they may have made untruthful statements. The federal prosecutors said the case warranted a full investigation because the video evidence raised doubts about the agents’ version of events.

Castro was arrested in Texas in May and held for three months before being released last week. Minnesota’s top prosecutor asked Texas to extradite him, but Governor Greg Abbott declined, citing doubts that Castro was a fugitive. The agent now faces trial in Minnesota, where the case will test the limits of federal authority and the accountability of ICE officers. The outcome could influence how immigration enforcement is conducted in the future.