Judge blocks Minnesota attempt to extradite ICE agent from Texas
Fox News correspondent Christina Coleman reported from Dallas after a federal judge halted Minnesota’s effort to extradite ICE officer Christian Castro from Texas. Castro is facing charges tied to the January shooting of a Venezuelan migrant during Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis, as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott reviews whether the officer meets the legal definition of a fugitive.
Federal prosecutors have brought charges against a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer, accusing him of misleading investigators about what happened before a Venezuelan man was shot in Minneapolis earlier this year, News Media has learned.
The Justice Department charged ICE agent Christian Castro with making false statements in connection with the Jan. 14 shooting of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, who was struck in the leg. A federal grand jury in Minnesota indicted Castro on Wednesday, according to a source familiar with the case.
Prosecutors allege Castro fired through the front door of a Minneapolis residence, injuring Sosa-Celis, and later gave investigators a false account of the moments leading up to the shooting. The case unfolded during the Trump administration’s intensified immigration enforcement push in Minnesota.
Left: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer Christian Castro enters a vehicle as reporters gather around him shortly after his release from the Carrizalez-Rucker Cameron County Detention Center in Brownsville, Texas, on Aug. 27. Federal prosecutors have charged him with lying about the Jan. 14 shooting of a Venezuelan man in Minneapolis. (Left: AP Photo/Michael Gonzalez; Right: Cameron County Sheriff’s Office)
What followed was at least one night of unrest in Minneapolis.
The charges came after Castro was released from a Texas jail last week, following Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s refusal to sign an extradition warrant to hand him over to Minnesota authorities.
Under Texas law and barring extradition, Castro must be released after 90 days of detention. Last month, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison filed an unsuccessful request for a temporary restraining order in an effort to block Castro’s release or to order his return to Minnesota, The Associated Press reported.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (left) and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (right) battled on X over whether an ICE agent involved in a recent shooting in Minneapolis should be extradited back to Minnesota. (Getty Images)
Castro is charged separately in that state with assault and false reporting of a crime related to the same shooting.
Federal authorities initially accused Sosa-Celis and another man of beating an officer with a broom handle and a snow shovel during a confrontation.
However, the charges were dropped after video evidence showed the officers may have lied about the encounter, prompting an investigation.
On Wednesday, ProPublica reported that federal prosecutors were barred by officials in Washington from pursuing civil rights charges against Castro.
News Media has reached out to ICE, the Department of Homeland Security and the Justice Department for comment.