Austin, Texas – Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan man who was shot by an agent of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), was working as a DoorDash delivery driver when the incident occurred in Austin, Texas, his lawyer reported.
According to Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, Garces Perez's
immigration attorney, the man had gone out to work on Sunday to make food
deliveries when ICE agents tried to stop him in North Austin.
Garces Perez himself recounted, during a press conference
held by phone, that an unmarked vehicle hit him twice before he realized that
immigration agents were trying to stop him. According to his account, after
attempting to stop, he asked the agents to let him move to a safer location and
was subsequently shot in the back.
The man was initially taken to a hospital, where, according
to his testimony, doctors determined the bullet was too close to his spine to
be removed. He was subsequently taken into ICE custody and transferred to a
detention center in Pearsall, Texas.
His lawyer stated that Garces Perez was later hospitalized
again due to his condition. The defense also filed a motion in federal court to
prevent his deportation and allow him to apply for a U visa, intended for
certain victims of crimes who cooperate with authorities. This version of
events will have to be verified, as some witnesses contradict the defense's
claims.