Federal immigration agents who killed a man during a traffic stop in Houston on Tuesday had been searching for a different person, according to a Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman.
The targets of the ICE investigation were two people from Guatemala, one of whom the agents believed was in a white van being driven by the man, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, according to two people with knowledge of the matter who were not permitted to speak about the case.
But the Guatemalan immigrants were not in the van. Mr. Araujo, a Mexican immigrant who had lived in the United States without authorization for 35 years, was on his way to work with three other men.
When agents tried to stop the vehicle, the encounter quickly escalated, and an agent shot Mr. Araujo in the abdomen. He died at a hospital hours later.
Homeland security officials said Mr. Araujo had tried to use his vehicle as a weapon, though no video or other evidence for that claim has emerged.
Federal agents had surveilled an address connected to one of the two Guatemalans weeks before and had seen two white vans at the property, the spokeswoman said in a statement. When they returned to the address on Tuesday, she said, “they observed a white van with an individual who resembled the target,” and initiated the traffic stop.
The agents were not wearing body cameras, according to the spokeswoman. Before trying to stop the van, the agents had looked into its owner and learned it was Mr. Araujo, who did not have legal status in the United States, according to the two people familiar with the case.
The shooting is part of a growing number of similar violent interactions involving civilians and immigration agents. More than 20 people have been shot at since September, nearly all of them in their cars. Some cases have been fatal. The shooting also comes as the Trump administration has ramped up its deportation campaign.
The killing of Mr. Araujo has incited outrage in Texas and beyond. Mr. Araujo’s sons said during a news briefing on Wednesday that they believed their father tried to get away because he was being chased by unmarked cars. Ronaldo Salgado, his oldest son, and a growing number of elected officials and immigration activists have demanded an independent inquiry.
“This is outrageous to me, and this is ridiculous to hear that no one in that van was a target of any sort of investigation,” Mr. Salgado said in response to the news that his father was not being sought by federal agents.
Federal authorities had said earlier that agents with ICE stopped a vehicle around 6:50 a.m. on Tuesday and tried to arrest Mr. Araujo, whom they described as an “illegal alien.” ICE alleged that Mr. Araujo “weaponized his vehicle” and tried to run over the agent, who then fired at him.
The other passengers in Mr. Araujo’s vehicle, according to a person familiar with the case, were Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego, Daniel Tirado Pantoja and Victor Hugo Salgado Araujo, the victim’s younger brother.
Dominga Aguilar Salgado, who is married to a third Araujo brother, said the family has not talked to Victor Hugo Salgado Araujo, who remains in immigration detention in Conroe, Texas, outside Houston.
“Imagine, one of them died and the other is in a detention center,” Ms. Salgado said. “The family is going through a lot. He saw what really happened.”
During the news briefing Wednesday, Ronaldo Salgado held back tears as he described seeing a video showing his father in agony moments after he was injured. Videos on social media and from news outlets appear to show immigration agents hovering over a man holding his abdominal area. Other images showed another man on the ground with his hands behind his back as someone screamed in pain.
About 40 people attended a vigil on Thursday night at the site of the shooting. An impromptu memorial was decorated with candles, flowers, rosaries, balloons and photos of Mr. Araujo. Some of the signs left there read, “We will not look away” and “every life is valuable regardless of immigration status.”
“I live not far from here and it just felt important to pay our respects,” said Nishta Mehra, 42, adding, “It’s important not to pretend like this isn’t happening.”
The Department of Homeland Security inspector general’s office is conducting an investigation. The F.B.I.’s Houston office said it will focus its investigation into what the authorities have called an assault on a federal law enforcement officer.
In many immigration enforcement shootings, videos have later surfaced that contradict agents’ accounts. Those instances include two fatal shootings in Minneapolis during a crackdown in January. In another case, video undermined an ICE agent’s account, resulting in dropped charges against the man who was shot.
Mr. Araujo’s family remembered him as a hard-working father of three U.S. citizens who was in the process of obtaining a work permit.
“He wanted nothing else in life but to provide for his wife and see his sons become great people,” Ronaldo said.
Kitty Bennett contributed research. Maria Jimenez Moya contributed reporting from Houston.
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