Harris County DA says any information about deadly ICE shooting could be 'pivotal' in investigation

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia and Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare shared new information about Tuesday's deadly ICE shooting in Magnolia Park.

The family of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national, disputes Homeland Security's claims that he was trying to evade immigration authorities in unmarked vehicles. DHS says agents claim he tried to run them down with his van, then an ICE agent fatally shot him.

Garcia said acting ICE director David Venturella confirmed to her that Araujo was not the intended target of the ICE operation, nor was his brother, who she says was a passenger in the vehicle when Araujo was fatally shot.

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The congresswoman said Venturella told her that ICE was searching for an individual with a final removal order who officers believed had entered the van and that they had an administrative warrant. The agents did not have body cams, and none of the vehicles had dashboard cameras that captured the incident, Garcia said.

During a press conference Friday, Teare said the DA's office has been conducting its own investigation since the incident happened.

"We investigate every officer-involved shooting in Harris County," Teare said. "When it involves an agency that is not ICE, universally, we are invited in that day. We run a parallel investigation where we collaborate with law enforcement."

"We were not invited into this scene on Tuesday," he continued, adding that his investigators have been there looking for surveillance video and talking to witnesses. "When someone in our community loses their life at the hands of law enforcement, that is the ultimate breach of trust with our community."

Teare urged anyone with information about the shooting to come forward.

"I am imploring the community -- anyone that was there that day, anyone that has a snippet of footage from a camera -- regardless of whether or not if you think that it's even relevant, send it to us," Teare said. "Things that you may not think are important could be the pivotal piece of information for us to finally figure out what actually happened."

The district attorney added that he hopes the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General (DHS-OIG) will share any evidence they find with his office.

Hugo Balderas, the lawyer representing two of the three passengers in Araujo's van, also attended Friday's press conference. He said he spoke to the three men being detained at the Montgomery ICE Processing Center in Conroe.

"My clients will forever be physically and emotionally scarred by this. One man lost a brother, and the other two men lost a dear friend," Balderas said. "My clients' versions of the events are extremely different from what ICE agents or the agency are saying."

Balderas continued by asking for the release of his clients from the processing center, saying they could be pressured to sign a voluntary departure. He also called for a private investigation.

The Houston Police Department also announced on Friday that it would provide resources to the federal investigation into the deadly shooting.

READ MORE: HPD to provide resources to federal investigation into ICE shooting at request of mayor: PD chief