Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan DoorDash driver and illegal immigrant, was shot in the back by ICE agents on September 20 in Austin, Texas, after allegedly fleeing from a traffic stop and hitting an agent with his car's side mirror. Despite this, he faces federal charges for assaulting a federal officer, carrying up to a 20-year prison sentence if convicted. The Department of Justice provided detailed accounts supporting the charges, including body camera footage showing Garces Perez with a bullet wound but no visible injuries to the agents involved.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-30,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
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A DoorDash driver who was shot in the back by ICE agents has been charged with assault after he allegedly attempted to flee a traffic stop and hit an agent with his car's side mirror.
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he → sign → mirror
Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, a Venezuelan national whom the Department of Justice (DOJ) described as 'an illegal alien,' was stopped by ICE while making a food delivery in Austin, Texas, on September 20.
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Department → describe → September
The agents had been looking for Garces Perez because he had a final order of removal issued by a judge.
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he → look → judge
During the stop, they asked him for his driver's license and confirmed his identity before ordering him to step out of his car, the DOJ said.
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DOJ → ask → car
Garces Perez allegedly ignored the order and took off, 'striking one of the ICE ERO [Enforcement and Removal Operations] officers in the torso with the driver’s side-view mirror,' according to the DOJ.
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Perez → ignore → DOJ
Authorities did not say whether the agent suffered any injuries.
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agent → say → injuries
He then led the agents 'on a high-speed chase' and managed to lose one of them before the other caught up, the DOJ said.
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DOJ → lead → them
Garces Perez then attempted to hit the agent who caught up with his car, 'causing the officer to fire his pistol,' the DOJ said.
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DOJ → attempt → pistol
Body camera footage released by the Austin Police Department shows that the bullet hit Garces Perez in the back.
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bullet → release → back
His attorney said the bullet has been lodged in his body since the shooting nine days ago.
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bullet → say → shooting
Federal Prosecutors announced on Tuesday that Garces Perez has been charged with one count of assaulting, resisting, interfering, and impeding a federal officer.
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Perez → announce → officer
He made his first court appearance the same day.
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He → make → appearance
If convicted, the 28-year-old Venezuelan faces up to 20 years in federal prison, according to the DOJ.
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Venezuelan → convict → DOJ
Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, was shot in the back by ICE agents in Austin, Texas, on September 20.
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Perez → shoot → September
He has since been charged with assaulting an officer
The Department of Justice on Tuesday released its most detailed account of the events leading up to the shooting.
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Department → charge → shooting
Garces Perez's car is pictured dented and with bullet holes
Body camera footage released by the Austin Police Department shows Garces Perez with a bullet wound in his back.
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footage → picture → back
His attorney said the bullet is still lodged in his body
A nine-page affidavit from a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agent that was also released on Tuesday, as well as the DOJ announcement of Garces Perez's charge, have provided the most detailed public account of the shooting since it occurred.
The court document includes three screenshots from one of the ICE agents' body camera footage.
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document → say → footage
The other agent who actually shot Garces Perez was not wearing a body camera, and the shooting was not captured on video because the agent who was wearing a camera had lost sight of Garces Perez during the pursuit, according to the affidavit.
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who → shoot → affidavit
The first screenshot shows an officer standing in front of Garces Perez’s driver’s side mirror.
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officer → show → mirror
The second shows the officer resting his hands on the hood and side of Garces Perez’s car, with the mirror close to or touching the officer’s abdomen.
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mirror → show → abdomen
The third image appears to show the car driving away.
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car → appear → ?
During Garces Perez's hearing on Tuesday, his attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, called on DHS to release the full body camera video rather than a few screenshots that could be misleading, per the AP.
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that → call → AP
She also said that her client was in 'extremely bad medical condition' and that he has been consistently pleading for surgery to remove the bullet that is still lodged in his back, which is preventing him from moving his arm without pain, the outlet reported.
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outlet → say → pain
Lincoln-Goldfinch further described her client as light-headed, nauseated and confused about what was happening.
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what → describe → client
An affidavit from a Department of Homeland Security agent included this screenshot of an ICE agent allegedly being struck by Garces Perez's side mirror
Garces Perez entered the US from Venezuela legally in 2024 under a Biden administration program that Trump disbanded.
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Trump → include → that
He was issued a final order of removal before the shooting
Garces Perez's attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said at a hearing for her client on Tuesday that he was in 'extremely bad medical condition'
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he → issue → condition
According to the affidavit, Garces Perez provided a very different account of the events leading up to his shooting than that of the DOJ.
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Perez → accord → DOJ
The most important discrepancy is that he claimed to have never attempted to hit an agent with his car.
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he → claim → car
Instead, he said that his vehicle was struck in the side by an officer's SUV after a brief chase, causing him to spin out of control before the officer opened fire.
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officer → say → fire
Garces Perez entered the US legally in 2024 under the Biden administration's CBP One program, which allowed asylum seekers to make appointments with US authorities.
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seekers → enter → authorities
The program was disbanded by Trump on the first day of his second term.
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program → disband → term
Lincoln-Goldfinch said that her client has a valid work permit and was only issued a final order of removal after he missed an immigration court hearing because the notice was sent to a former address.
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notice → say → address
Garces Perez's shooting drew protests across Austin and condemnation from Democratic officials in its aftermath.
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shooting → draw → aftermath
Protests erupted across Austin in the aftermath of Garces Perez's shooting, and it was condemned by Democratic officials
It also drew comparisons to other high-profile ICE shootings and claims from federal agents that they were threatened by drivers weaponizing their vehicles.
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they → erupt → vehicles
In some cases, those claims were walked back after the release of body camera footage.
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claims → walk → footage
A woman shot by Border Patrol agents in Chicago and a man shot by ICE agents in Minneapolis were both previously charged with assaulting officers, but those charges were dropped.
At least four people have been fatally shot by federal agents during ICE operations this year.
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people → shoot → operations
The Aporia
