Lorenzo Salgado Araujo shot and killed by ICE agent in Houston, authorities confirm: Live updates

Harris County commissioners made available $2.5 million in taxpayer dollars for the District Attorney's office to continue an investigation into a deadly shooting involving ICE in Houston.

Commissioners approved the funding in a unanimous vote on Thursday.

At a news conference before the vote, District Attorney Sean Teare did not immediately disclose exactly what the money would be used for. Teare said the funds may go toward anything the independent investigation needs, which may include hiring more full-time personnel, overtime pay, or seeking outside counsel, if needed.

Teare said the money will be spread over the next three years, although it may not take that long to determine whether charges will be filed.

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Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego, one of the three men who were in the van with Lorenzo Salgado Araujo when he was shot and killed by an ICE agent, was released on Wednesday from the immigration detention center in Conroe after a judge's ruling, his attorney said.

In an update on Wednesday afternoon from Rojas Pliego's attorney, the family confirmed that Rojas Pliego had been released.

The order was filed on Monday and stated that Rojas Pliego was to be released within 48 hours.

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Aaron Reitz took the oath of office earlier this month and, in his first statement, wrote that "Things are about to get very bad for criminals in the Southern District of Texas."

Reitz is the top federal law enforcement officer in the Southern District of Texas - an area that includes 43 counties and 10 million people. It stretches from Houston to the U.S. southern border.

He took office just two days after the ICE shooting death of undocumented immigrant Lorenzo Salgado Araujo. DHS said Salgado Araujo was not the target of their enforcement operation but tried to run over an officer with his van. Witnesses have refuted that, but Reitz said his office is among the agencies investigating what happened and they want the truth.

"The investigation is still ongoing," he said. "We draw no conclusions from what happened. Obviously it was a tragedy. But right now we don't know much. We have reason to believe it is not the hysterical, vigilante sort of justice that was happening."

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A federal judge on Monday ordered the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to release from their custody one of the witnesses to a federal immigration agent's fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo.

Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego must be released from detention within 48 hours of the order, which was issued Monday evening. Authorities must release Rojas Pliego in a public space and give his attorneys notice at least three hours beforehand, according to the order.

Rojas Pliego, a Mexican citizen, was one of three men who were passengers in Salgado Araujo's van when Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers began following the group and ultimately shot the longtime Houston resident. Rojas Pliego has lived in the United States since 1998, has several children and stepchildren who are U.S. citizens, and has no criminal record, according to the order.

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