A Venezuelan man shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer was in custody Monday at an ICE detention center in Texas after he was released from a hospital with a bullet still lodged in his back, according to a spokesperson for the man's attorney.
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bullet → shoot → attorney
Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, was making a DoorDash delivery in the Texas capital of Austin on Sunday before he was shot during a traffic stop, said Fabiana Meléndez Ruiz, a spokesperson for immigration attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch.
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Ruiz → make → Goldfinch
Ruiz said that Perez called his wife around 12:30 p.m. Sunday to tell her that he had been shot.
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he → say → her
She said Perez's wife hasn't spoken with him since then.
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wife → say → him
Perez was being detained at the South Texas ICE Processing Center in Pearsall, about 130 miles (209 kilometers) southwest of Austin, Ruiz told The Associated Press.
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Ruiz → detain → Press
She said Lincoln-Goldfinch spoke by phone with Perez, who told her that he was being interrogated while a bullet remained in his back.
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bullet → say → back
Perez also said he had no pain medication, according to Ruiz.
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he → say → Ruiz
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, has released little information and has not said what prompted the shooting.
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what → oversee → shooting
In a statement early Monday, the department said it was investigating the shooting of a Venezuelan man in the U.S. illegally who “had a final order of removal.”
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who → say → removal
Perez is an asylum seeker and entered the United States through a parole program, and he has no criminal history, Ruiz said.
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Ruiz → enter → history
“Regardless of his status, the use of force was unwarranted," Ruiz said.
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Ruiz → say → force
"As far as we understand, he was here legally.”
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he → understand → ?
The shooting occurred amid a surge in ICE enforcement across the U.S. during President Donald Trump's second term.
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shooting → occur → term
During the summer, it reported more than 50,000 monthly arrests in July and August — a first for the agency.
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it → report → agency
Immigration officers have come under intense scrutiny amid a series of shootings during the crackdown.
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officers → come → crackdown
At least four people have been fatally shot by federal officers during immigration enforcement operations this year.
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people → shoot → operations
Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis told reporters Sunday that the shooting occurred following a traffic stop.
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shooting → tell → stop
She said local police were not involved.
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police → say → ?
Local officials said the man was shot once in the torso and had been hospitalized in serious but stable condition.
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man → say → condition
Perez's wife and attorney were unable to get information on his condition from the hospital Sunday until hospital attorneys told them at around 6 p.m. that he had been discharged 90 minutes earlier, Ruiz said.
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Ruiz → get → p.m.
She said that ICE had not confirmed any information to Lincoln-Goldfinch, who used legal databases and other means to discover where he was being detained.
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he → say → databases
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, a Democrat, said Sunday he wants local police to have a role in investigating the shooting.
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police → say → shooting
Watson said it wouldn’t be appropriate for ICE to investigate on its own.
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ICE → say → own
At the scene of the shooting, a dark blue Toyota Corolla was parked under an overpass with damage to its passenger-side door and what appeared to be bullet holes before it was towed away Sunday evening.
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it → park → door
About 100 anti-ICE protesters gathered Sunday in the shooting’s aftermath.
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protesters → gather → aftermath
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Associated Press journalist Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia, contributed.
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Bynum → contribute → Savannah
The Aporia
