
ICE agent arrested in Minneapolis on charges of assault and false reporting of crime
Christian Castro faced assault charges after shooting Venezuelan man through the door of his apartment while children were present
A federal immigration officer wanted on assault charges for shooting and âÂÂwounding a Venezuelan man in Minneapolis was arrested there on Wednesday, eight months after a confrontation that became a flashpoint over âÂÂDonald TrumpâÂÂs deportation sweeps.
Christian Castro, an Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent, was taken into custody by agents of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension in Minneapolis and was booked into the Hennepin county jail on his outstanding arrest warrant, the agency said.
Castro had been released on bond from federal custody earlier this month, after an initial appearance in a district court âÂÂin McAllen, Texas, on charges of lying to investigators about the circumstances of the 14 January shooting.
Under an agreement with Minnesota law enforcement, âÂÂCastro voluntarily drove to Minneapolis from Texas to turn himself in to state authorities at his attorneyâÂÂs office but ended â up being arrested minutes before he was due to arrive, the lawyer, Daniel Gerdts, told Reuters.
Another lawyer representing the ICE agent, Rolando Cantu, said his âÂÂclient always had intended to answer to the charges in Minneapolis. He disputed Hennepin county prosecutorsâ assertions that Castro might flee to Mexico, saying: âÂÂHe wants his âÂÂday in court.âÂÂ
The federal indictment charging Castro with making false statements marked the first justice department prosecution of a federal law enforcement officer accused of wrongdoing arising from the massive Minneapolis ICE deployment dubbed Operation Metro Surge.
That operation, part of TrumpâÂÂs wider immigration crackdown, drew weeks of protests and clashes between ICE and demonstrators, leading to âÂÂthe fatal shootings of two US citizens by federal agents.
Castro already faced state assault charges in Minnesota stemming from the confrontation in which he shot Julio âÂÂCesar Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan national, in the leg through the door of the manâÂÂs apartment while children were present inside the home.
The state charges also include false reporting of âÂÂa crime â after Castro allegedly told superiors at the Department of Homeland Security that Sosa-Celis and others attacked him with a snow shovel and broom, which was disproved by video evidence.
Initial efforts to arrest Castro were thwarted when the ICE agent returned to his home state of Texas, leading Minnesota officials to issue a warrant for his arrest.
Castro was apprehended by Texas Rangers, but Greg Abbott, a Republican and supporter of TrumpâÂÂs mass deportation sweeps, refused to sign âÂÂextradition papers sent by Tim âÂÂWalz, MinnesotaâÂÂs democratic governor.
Abbott questioned whether â Castro could be considered a fugitive from justice, and thus subject to extradition, because DHS had reassigned him to his home state of Texas after the Minneapolis shooting.
The ICE agent ultimately spent 90 days in a Texas county jail and âÂÂwas released on 27 August after a federal judge in Texas denied a request from Minnesota to immediately âÂÂorder his extradition. Castro â was re-arrested in Texas after his federal grand jury indictment in early September.
DHS has suspended Castro from ICE, and a person familiar with the case has said a civil rights investigation into the Sosa-Celis shooting had been opened.
Castro was expected to make his first state court appearance in Minneapolis on Thursday. He will then make â an initial appearance âÂÂin a District Court in neighboring St Paul, the state capital, on Friday morning to âÂÂface charges in the federal indictment.
âÂÂGovernor AbbottâÂÂs attempt to shield Mr Castro from accountability has failed. We look forward to commencing our prosecution,â said Mary Moriarty, the Hennepin county attorney who brought the state âÂÂcase, in a statement.
