Garces Perez was working as a food-delivery driver on Sunday when, according to his account relayed by his mother, an ICE vehicle sideswiped his car. He told her during a video call that agents had crashed into the vehicle and shot him. She said she then saw an officer pull him from the car. The sequence before the shooting remains disputed: Garces Perez said the agents did not identify themselves or switch on emergency lights until after the collision, while the Department of Homeland Security described the incident as a targeted vehicle stop. ICE has not publicly explained why he was shot while seated in the car.
Video from an Austin police officer’s body camera does not show the shooting. It does show Garces Perez in the vehicle with two ICE agents nearby, saying his shoulder hurts before officers handcuff him. A responding police officer cuts away his shirt and exposes a gunshot wound in his upper back. The federal agent who fired was not wearing a body camera, according to a person familiar with the incident.
His mother, Flor Perez, said she hopes he can see a doctor to remove the bullet. Representative Greg Casar, who visited the detention facility, said the wound was packed with gauze that became blood-soaked and had to be changed several times a day. DHS, by contrast, said Garces Perez was receiving medical care around the clock. The accounts leave his immediate treatment in dispute.
Garces Perez entered the United States from Mexico in December 2023 through an appointment process using the CBP One app. DHS says his work permit expired in 2025 and that he is eligible for deportation. His lawyers have asked for his release so he can take part in the shooting investigation and pursue legal status; his first hearing before an immigration judge in Texas is scheduled for next Wednesday. The case comes amid protests after federal immigration agents shot at least 20 people since Donald Trump returned to office, seven fatally, according to figures cited in the report.