A man who was living in the U.S. illegally was fatally shot by law enforcement in Houston after reportedly attempting to ram Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers with a vehicle. This incident was confirmed by the agency on Tuesday.
According to an ICE spokesperson, the officers aimed to stop Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national, at approximately 6:50 a.m., during a traffic-related operation, as relayed to News Media.
In an effort to evade capture, Araujo allegedly used his vehicle aggressively, attempting to run down an ICE officer, prompting the officer to discharge his firearm in what was described as self-defense.
ICE officials reported that during the operation in Houston to apprehend Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, he attempted to attack them with his car. In response, an officer fired, resulting in Araujo’s death. The agency provided these details on Tuesday. (Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
After being hit, Araujo was rushed to a hospital but did not survive his injuries. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is currently investigating the circumstances surrounding the shooting.
On July 1, an ICE agent opened fire on an illegal immigrant who also tried ramming a vehicle into authorities, ICE said.
A law enforcement officer walks past the ICE logo ahead of a press conference on May 11, 2017, at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement headquarters in Washington, D.C. (Salwan Georges/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The officers were trying to take Clemente Lara-Hernandez, a Mexican national, into custody when he allegedly tried running into an officer and drove the wrong way on a one-way street before crashing into a civilian vehicle.
An ICE officer fired a shot, but no one appeared to be injured. Lara-Hernandez remains at large.
“Our ICE law enforcement officers are facing a more than 1,300% increase in assaults, a 3,300% increase in vehicular attacks, and an 8,000% increase in death threats against them as they put their lives on the line to arrest the worst of the worst,” ICE said at the time of the shooting.