The Aporia · Justice Department charges Venezuelan man shot by ICE officer in Austin

Justice Department charges Venezuelan man shot by ICE officer in Austin

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The Straits Times. (2026, September 29). Justice Department charges Venezuelan man shot by ICE officer in Austin. The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/world/justice-department-charges-venezuelan-man-shot-by-ice-officer-in-austin

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Quick Summary

On September 29, the Justice Department charged Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, with assaulting and interfering with a federal officer after an incident where he was shot by an ICE officer in Austin, Texas. According to the complaint filed on Monday, Garces Perez drove away from officers who asked him to step out of his vehicle and struck one officer before another officer fired shots at him. The article highlights conflicting accounts: the Justice Department’s claim that Garces Perez tried to run over the officer, and Garces Perez's version, as told to a DHS investigator, that he was shot after an officer crashed into his car.

Written by AI on 2026-09-29, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On September 20, Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan delivery driver in Austin, Texas, was shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent while he was making DoorDash deliveries. Federal prosecutors charged him on September 29 with assaulting, resisting, interfering with, or impeding a federal officer; if convicted, Garces Perez could face up to 20 years in prison.

The incident began when ICE officers noticed his car's emergency lights flashing and found it registered to him, who was subject to deportation. When approached, he allegedly refused to exit the vehicle and drove away, hitting an ICE officer with his side mirror. The agent then shot Garces Perez in the upper back while attempting to apprehend him.

Garces Perez had a bullet lodged near his spine for nearly two weeks before undergoing surgery on October 2 to remove it. He appeared in federal court on Wednesday in a wheelchair and wearing a sling, as he remains in ICE custody awaiting trial. His legal team warned that the bullet's position could cause permanent damage or infection without prompt medical attention.

This case has sparked protests and outrage over aggressive immigration enforcement tactics under the Trump administration.

Written for “Venezuelan Man Shot by ICE Charged with Assault” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 13 other(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted

sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

23%

3 of 13 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

withheld

no quote in the article backed the model's score

Publisher signals

66/100

The Straits Times's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Politics

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Analyzed 2026-09-29 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Straits Times · 4060 article(s) · 5 correction(s) detected

Running correction rate · 5 correction(s)

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Who wrote this

The Straits Times

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Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

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Topics

Austin ICE Reuters Texas Venezuelan

Subjects

Garces Perez PERSON · 6× Texas GPE · 3× Austin GPE · 2× ICE ORG · 2× Reuters ORG · 2× Venezuelan NORP · 2× District Court ORG · 1× Justice Department ORG · 1× Wilber Rafael Garces Perez PERSON · 1× the Justice Department ORG · 1×

Narrative

While the Trump administration has brought criminal charges against at least 851 people for attacking or impeding federal officers, a Reuters review of federal court records in July found that 31% of the completed cases had ended in dismissal, compared to the 8% dismissal rate of all federal criminal cases.

framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-29

🔮 Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch said in an Instagram post on Sunday that her client still has the bullet in his body and a fractured clavicle, and that his supporters are concerned he could experience sepsis and permanent damage if he does not get surgery soon.

2026-09-29 · The Straits Times

Justice Department charges Venezuelan man shot by ICE officer in Austin · mixed framing

Claims (13 extracted, 3 hedged)

Justice Department charges Venezuelan man shot by ICE officer in Austin Sept 29 - asserted

Department → charge → Austin

A Venezuelan man shot by a federal immigration agent on September 20 in Austin, Texas, appeared in federal court on Tuesday after being charged with assaulting, resisting, interfering, and impeding a federal officer, the Justice Department said in a press release. asserted

Department → shoot → release

The complaint against Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, citing footage from a camera worn by one of the ICE officers who pulled him over that day, says that when they asked him to step out of his car, Garces Perez drove away, striking one officer in the torso with his car’s side mirror. asserted

Perez → cite → mirror

The video has not been released publicly. asserted

video → release → ?

That officer, who was not wearing a camera, chased Garces Perez down in his car and soon caught up with him, according to the complaint, which was filed on Monday in US District Court for the Western District of Texas. uncertain

which → wear → Texas

At that point, Garces Perez tried to drive into the officer, who fired on him with his pistol, the officer alleges in the complaint. asserted

officer → try → complaint

Publicly available videos of the incident do not show the shooting, but do show Garces Perez injured in the car afterward. asserted

Perez → show → car

Garces Perez told the DHS official investigating the case that he was shot after an officer drove his SUV into his car, spinning it around, according to the complaint. uncertain

officer → tell → complaint

Garces Perez's attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment. asserted

attorney → respond → comment

Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch said in an Instagram post on Sunday that her client still has the bullet in his body and a fractured clavicle, and that his supporters are concerned he could experience sepsis and permanent damage if he does not get surgery soon. uncertain

he → say → surgery

The Department of Homeland Security has said he is receiving adequate medical care. asserted

he → say → care

% → bring → cases

Garces Perez is separately scheduled to appear before a federal immigration judge in Texas on Wednesday for a hearing on whether he can stay in the country. asserted

he → schedule → country