A federal US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent has been charged with assault following a January shooting involving two Venezuelan immigrants during an immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis.
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced that agent Christian Castro faces four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime. Authorities have issued a nationwide warrant for his arrest.
“Mr. Castro is an ICE agent but his federal badge does not make him immune from state charges for his criminal conduct in Minnesota,” Moriarty said at a news conference.
The shooting occurred on January 14 when prosecutors allege Castro fired through the front door of a Minneapolis home, striking Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in the leg. Video footage contradicted Castro’s claims that he had been attacked with a shovel and broom during the confrontation, showing a snow shovel remained on the ground.
The Department of Homeland Security criticized the charges, calling them unlawful and a political stunt. Federal prosecutors had previously charged Sosa-Celis and his cousin Alfredo Aljorna in connection with the incident but later dropped those charges. Two ICE agents involved were placed on administrative leave after investigators alleged false statements under oath.