Federal prosecutors have charged an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer, Christian Castro, with making false statements to investigators regarding a shooting incident in Minnesota, according to sources familiar with the matter. A federal grand jury returned a six-count indictment against the officer on Wednesday, though the case remains under seal. Law enforcement officials are currently working to locate Castro.
This federal action follows a series of legal complications surrounding the officer. Castro was previously charged by local prosecutors in May, but a standoff has developed after Texas Governor Greg Abbott refused to extradite him. Castro was released from a Texas jail last week.
The shooting occurred during a federal immigration surge in Minnesota during the Trump administration, taking place just one week after federal agents killed Renee Good. In January, two men, Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna and Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, were hit with federal charges of forcibly assaulting, resisting, or impeding federal officers. Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan immigrant, had been shot in the leg by an ICE agent during the encounter.
Initial accounts of the incident provided by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated that Sosa-Celis had fled a traffic stop, crashed his vehicle, and attempted to flee on foot. DHS claimed that two men emerged from a nearby apartment and attacked the agent with a broom handle and a snow shovel. The agency further alleged that Sosa-Celis broke free and struck the officer, prompting the agent to fire a "defensive shot to defend his life."
However, an FBI affidavit later contradicted these claims, stating that Aljorna was the individual who fled and that Sosa-Celis had initially struck Castro with a broomstick while the agent attempted to arrest Aljorna. Furthermore, cellphone video shared by a Democratic state lawmaker captured a woman telling 911 that her husband was chased by ICE agents before being shot in front of his family.
The federal case against Aljorna and Sosa-Celis eventually collapsed. In February, federal prosecutors dropped the charges, citing "newly discovered evidence" that was "materially inconsistent" with the allegations. The charges were dismissed with prejudice, meaning they cannot be refiled.
Todd Lyons, then the acting head of ICE, stated that video evidence contradicted sworn testimony provided by Castro and a second officer. Both were placed on administrative leave, and Castro has since been suspended without pay. "Video evidence has revealed that sworn testimony provided by two separate officers appears to have made untruthful statements," Lyons said at the time. "Lying under oath is a serious federal offense."
