Man shot by ICE in Austin in detention facility with bullet still in body

Wilber Rafael Garces Perez's attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said she is working to get him out of ICE custody to get proper medical attention.AUSTIN, Texas (CN) — Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, who was shot by a federal agent the day prior, called in to a news conference from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center Monday to add more details on the shooting and his current condition.Garces Perez, a 28-year-old from Venezuela, spoke over the phone with Austin immigration attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch and said a bullet remains lodged in his torso.“He is saying that he is in a lot of pain,” Lincoln-Goldfinch said, translating for Garces Perez. “They did not take out the bullet because it was close to his spine [and] that they had him in a very cold room without a bed.”Lincoln-Goldfinch confirmed her client is being held at a detention center in Pearsall, Texas, over 130 miles southwest of Austin. She said a petition for habeas corpus has been filed on Garces Perez’s behalf in federal court; however, the filing has not been made public at this time.“We are going to focus first on his medical treatment, then getting him out of detention, resolving his immigration matter and holding the government accountable, both the agents and agencies that did this to him,” Lincoln-Goldfinch said.Courthouse News has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, for comment on Garces Perez’s condition and whether he is expected to receive medical treatment for his wound. The agency has not responded.The department has provided scant details about Garces Perez. In a Sunday night post on X, the department claimed he illegally entered the United States during the Biden administration and is currently pending removal.Lincoln-Goldfinch challenged the agency’s story, saying her client lawfully entered the country in 2024 using the CBP One app to seek asylum. She said a removal order was given after Garces Perez failed to appear in immigration court after his notice was sent to the wrong address.“The court is notorious for sending notices of hearings to the wrong address,” Lincoln-Goldfinch said.The government has also remained tight-lipped on the events that led to Sunday’s shooting. During Monday’s news conference, Garces Perez said through an interpreter he was out delivering for DoorDash when an SUV driven by ICE agents aggressively approached his vehicle before ramming it. It was after his car came to a stop that he said the agents shot at him. Video footage captured by a bystander shows ICE agents and Austin police removing Garces Perez from a vehicle and cutting the back of his shirt to reveal a bullet wound in his upper back.Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said during a conference on Sunday that the Austin Police Department was not involved in the shooting but responded to the scene shortly after. Watson voiced his desire to see the Austin Police Department be involved in the investigation that is currently being conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, with support from the FBI.During Monday’s news briefing, Lincoln-Goldfinch was joined by leaders from the League of United Latin American Citizens, the NAACP and Austin-area Democratic Representatives Lloyd Doggett and Greg Casar. Many of the speakers echoed Mayor Watson’s call for an independent investigation of the shooting and highlighted their deep distrust for ICE.“I don’t care if you are a Democrat or a Republican, we all believe the federal government should not be allowed to shoot you and then disappear you from the country so that no one can be held responsible,” Casar told reporters. “That is deeply un-American, and we are not going to let it happen.”This is the third ICE-involved shooting in Texas, following the fatal shootings of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston and Ruben Ray Martinez, an American citizen, in South Padre Island.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads