LULAC has called for Venezuelan immigrant Wilber Rafael Garces Perez to not be deported after he was shot by an ICE agent during a traffic stop in Austin. Garces Perez, who was delivering DoorDash at the time of the incident and is now hospitalized with serious but stable injuries, could provide key testimony about how the shooting occurred. His attorney alleges inadequate medical care following the shooting, while DHS confirms Garces Perez's illegal immigrant status and states he remains in federal custody pending removal. Rep. Lloyd Doggett supports an independent investigation into ICE practices due to concerns over truthfulness from federal immigration officials.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-22,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
On September 20, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer shot and wounded a man in Austin, Texas, during what appears to have been a brief foot pursuit. The victim was taken to a local hospital in serious but stable condition after being shot once in the torso. Police Chief Lisa Davis said that local police were not involved, and ICE is handling the investigation, though Mayor Kirk Watson wants city police to be part of it for transparency. Rights advocates are calling for an independent probe into this incident, which comes amid growing scrutiny of ICE operations under the Trump administration's immigration policies.
Written for “ICE Agent Shoots Wounds ManAustin” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 62 other(s) covering the same event.
One of the nation's largest Hispanic civil rights groups called Monday for the Venezuelan illegal immigrant who was shot during an ICE pursuit in Austin to not be deported, arguing he is a key witness in the investigation into officers' use of force.
asserted
he → call → force
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) made the statements Monday afternoon after an agent shot and wounded Wilber Rafael Garces Perez during a traffic stop.
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agent → make → stop
Garces Perez was hospitalized in serious but stable condition.
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Perez → hospitalize → condition
The shooting sparked protests in Austin and calls from local officials for an independent investigation.
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shooting → spark → investigation
You do not deport the key witness to your own officers' use of force," LULAC CEO Juan Peruano said.
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Peruano → deport → force
According to Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, the attorney for Garces Perez and his wife, Garces Perez was delivering DoorDash when an "unmarked black truck sideswiped him."
uncertain
truck → accord → him
She said he did not know the vehicle was operated by ICE and subsequently made a U-turn under the highway before the agents continued to pursue him.
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agents → say → him
"The truck chased him and sideswiped him again.
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truck → chase → him
And the agents came out and shot him in the back of the neck and pulled him out of the car," Lincoln-Goldfinch said.
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Goldfinch → come → car
Lincoln-Goldfinch also claimed Garces Perez did not receive sufficient medical care, and the bullet remained lodged hours after the shooting.
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bullet → claim → shooting
"We learned that at 4:00 he still had a bullet lodged in his back.
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bullet → learn → back
He was shot here in his back, and they didn't take the bullet out, and they didn't give him pain medication.
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they → shoot → medication
And they transferred him to ICE, to a processing center, where he spent the night without a bed," Lincoln-Goldfinch said.
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Goldfinch → transfer → bed
And this is why we're calling for a stop to ICE traffic stops.
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we → call → stops
ICE officers are over armed, overpaid, under trained and violent.
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officers → train → ?
They don't know how to safely conduct traffic stops.
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They → know → stops
She continued to condemn the accounts provided by federal agents, claiming ICE officials do not tell the truth.
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officials → continue → truth
"We are fed up with ICE and DHS telling us lies about what has happened in these incidents where people are being murdered and shot," she said.
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she → feed → incidents
Rep. Lloyd Doggett echoed Lincoln-Goldfinch's assertions, claiming that federal immigration officials often lie.
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officials → echo → assertions
"ICE has no credibility anymore.
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ICE → have → credibility
It lies.
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It → lie → ?
We know it lies.
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it → know → ?
We've seen it demonstrated again and again, and we need the kind of independent structure to demand some accountability," he said.
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he → see → accountability
DHS sources confirmed to Fox News on Sunday that Garces Perez is an illegal immigrant from Venezuela with a final order of removal.
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Perez → confirm → removal
DHS said Garces Perez illegally entered the United States under the Biden administration.
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Perez → say → administration
The agency said he was shot during a law enforcement operation.
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he → say → operation
"The illegal alien's condition is stable, and he is in federal custody pending removal," DHS added on X.
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DHS → pende → X.
The Aporia
