Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was shot and killed Tuesday morning during what ICE claims was an attempted traffic stop as part of a targeted enforcement operation. ICE alleges Salgado Araujo attempted to evade arrest, rammed his car into an ICE vehicle, and refused commands to stop.
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The agency said the man tried to run over an agent, leading to the officer firing his weapon in what ICE claims is self-defense. ICE states that the man was hit and was taken to the hospital, where he died.
In the days following the shooting, Salgado Araujo's family has called for an independent investigation into the case, and said they have not heard anything from the Department of Homeland Security or ICE.
"They haven't sent anyone to speak to myself or my family, no contact at all. We still don't have any answers. All we have to go for is their statement that they released. There has been no communication between us and our DHS," Salgado Araujo's son, Ronaldo Salgado, said in an interview with ABC News' John Quiñones.
During the emotional interview, Ronaldo and his brother, Lorenzo Salgado Jr., added that their home is now empty, and they are left without answers. Ronaldo said he has seen the video of the vehicles chasing the van and that his father did not know the unmarked vehicles were ICE agents, but believes he was more concerned about his tools and workers, as the work van has been stolen in the past.
"One of my dad's biggest fears was for his work van and tools to be stolen. In the past, it has happened before that his work van was stolen, and he never got those tools back. He got his van, but no tools. So ever since then, he's been cautious about where he leaves his van, where he drives, who's around him," Ronaldo said.
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Ronaldo said his father's priority was to put his three sons through college before he went for his own American dream.
"For the better part of the last 35 years, we were his priority," Ronaldo said. "He got the American dream for us, and he was on his way of obtaining his American dream through the work permit."
The family said they started Lorenzo's process in January 2025 and were told it was going to take 18 months.
"We crossed every T, dotted every I, filled out every document, went to every appointment. The last appointment he went to was for his fingerprints, and we're just waiting to hear back from the lawyers to hear that he got his work permit. He was excited about that," Ronaldo said.
Now, the family is left with more questions than answers from that tragic day.
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"Why did they choose him? Why did they choose to follow him? Like, what? What was the premise? My dad had no criminal history. My dad, you know, wasn't doing anything illegal. He was picking up his workers to go to work," Ronaldo said.