Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican national, was driving to work with three co-workers on Tuesday when agents stopped his white van. DHS said officers believed the driver matched the person they were trying to arrest as part of an immigration enforcement operation.
Officials say Salgado tried to flee and struck an ICE vehicle, leading an officer to open fire in what DHS described as self-defence. Salgado was taken to hospital, where he later died.
DHS later acknowledged that Salgado was not the person agents were looking for. The agency also confirmed the officers involved were not wearing body cameras, although it says more agents will receive them in the coming months.
Salgado’s family said he had lived and worked in the Houston area for about 30 years, had no criminal record, and was close to receiving a work permit.
The shooting sparked protests in Houston, and four Democratic members of Congress have called for an independent investigation. Mexico’s government has also announced plans to file criminal complaints in the U.S. over the deaths of several Mexican citizens during ICE detention or enforcement operations.
