10
Loading video...
By Dan Gooding
Associate News Editor
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
A man shot in the back by an immigration agent in Austin, Texas, now faces a federal charge after allegedly hitting the agent with his car's mirror as he drove away from a traffic stop.
In a U.S. District Court filing released Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) accused DoorDash driver Wilber Rafael Garces Perez of assaulting, resisting, interfering, and impeding a federal officer after the incident on September 20.
Garces Perez was shot after fleeing agents during a traffic stop. It was when he drove away that DHS alleges he struck the agent, although the complaint did not specify any injuries.
Read More on U.S.
The shooting, adding to a string of ICE agent-related shootings in Texas and around the country under President Donald Trump, sparked protests in the city.
Newsweek reached out to Garces Perez's attorney via contact form Tuesday afternoon. DHS deferred to the Department of Justice, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
New Body Cam Stills: What They Show
As part of the filing in the Western District of Texas, DHS provided three stills from an agent's body camera, taken during an initial vehicle stop after agents identified the Venezuelan man as having a final order of removal.
The photos show an agent identified as L.G. standing to the front left of the driver's side door, close to the vehicle stopped on the edge of a highway. The complaint explains that agents spoke with the man in the car and confirmed his identity in a conversation that was "pleasant and not aggressive."
After a minute of discussion, the complaint said Garces Perez abruptly rolled up his window.
The images show the car starting to move off, with L.G. extremely close to the side mirror, before the final image shows him getting out of its way as the car leaves. It was at this point, the complaint alleges, that the agent was struck "in his torso."
...
...
...
1 of 3
The complaint says L.G. and the agent filming, identified as D.F., pursued Garces Perez in their vehicles with emergency lights and sirens activated through a residential and commercial area.
At one point, D.F. said he lost sight of L.G. and Garces Perez and turned off his body camera. D.F. tried to reach L.G. on the phone, with the latter calling his colleague back, giving his location, and explaining that Garces Perez had allegedly tried to strike him with his car, so LG. had fired his pistol.
The account does not give L.G.'s viewpoint, and there did not appear to be body cam footage of the shooting itself.
What Has Garces Perez Said?
According to the court filing, Garces Perez told D.F. he had left a restaurant near W Anderson Lane and Anderson Square in Austin. He said he saw a black SUV following him, but it did not activate its emergency lights. The car then cut him off at an intersection, Garces Perez said, and the abrupt maneuver led him to strike the car L.G. was in.
Only after the collision, the man said, did the agent activate his emergency lights.
Garces Perez told D.F. that L.G. had approached his car and identified himself as an immigration agent in Spanish. Garces Perez said he provided his Texas driver's license through a small gap in his window.
When L.G. asked Garces Perez to get out of the car, he said he knew he would be apprehended and asked to park elsewhere so his wife could pick the car up for him. He admitted to D.F. that he ignored L.G.'s command to step out of the vehicle and instead drove away.
Garces Perez allegedly told D.F. that the chase ended when L.G.'s vehicle struck his and caused it to spin around. He then alleged L.G. fired through the rear passenger-side window, striking him in the upper back.
Related Story
Four Questions About Austin ICE Shooting as Bodycam Released
Where Is Garces Perez Now?
Garces Perez, whose attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch said arrived lawfully in the U.S. in 2024 under then-President Joe Biden as an asylum seeker, was initially taken to a nearby hospital before being released into ICE custody.
DHS later said that Garces Perez’s work permit had expired last year and a judge had ordered his deportation after the man missed a hearing in immigration court. According to his attorney, Garces Perez did not attend the hearing because notice was sent to a former address.
Following the shooting, Lincoln-Goldfinch said her client had been held at ICE's detention complex in Pearsall, Texas, alleging the bullet was still inside him on Thursday. According to her X account, he remains at the facility pending a habeas hearing Wednesday.
Other ICE Shootings in Texas
ICE agents have been involved in shootings elsewhere in Texas over the past year and a half, some of which have turned fatal.
In March 2025, Ruben Ray Martinez, an American citizen, was fatally shot by an ICE agent in South Padre Island, after he allegedly tried to drive away from a traffic stop. The ICE agent's involvement was not revealed until a Newsweek review of FOIA-obtained files by American Oversight in February 2026.
A Mexican immigrant, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, was also shot dead by an ICE agent, as he, his brother and their workmates drove to work in Houston in July 2026. Agents said he had tried to weaponize his vehicle.
He had lived in the U.S. for 30 years, according to his sons, who later testified to Congress on fatal ICE shootings.
...
What Happens Next
Garces Perez was detained without bond Tuesday. A hearing date for the federal case was not immediately available.
Travis County District Attorney's Office has asked DHS to halt removal proceedings against Garces Perez while an investigation into his shooting is conducted.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Gabe Whisnant and Sam Wilson.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines