As the federal investigation into the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over the fatal shooting of an illegal alien in Houston, Texas, on July 7 is still in its infancy, the agency experienced a similar shooting of an illegal alien in Biddeford, Maine, early Monday morning. In both incidents, the Department of Homeland Security says the shootings involve illegal aliens weaponizing their vehicles against ICE agents.
UPDATE: 6:00 p.m.: Department of Homeland Security officials issued a statement on the shooting in Maine of an undocumented migrant who had an order of removal. Following is the statement published on X:
ORIGINAL STORY CONTINUES:
As reported by Breitbart News, the second fatal ICE-involved shooting in less than a week occurred around 8:00 a.m. at the corner of Pool and Hill Streets in Biddeford, Maine. Although ICE has yet to issue an official statement, U.S. Senator August King of Maine, an Independent who caucuses with the Democrats, issued a statement to the Maine press corps based on a conversation with DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin on Monday.
King commented on the information provided to him by Secretary Mullin, saying:
About 20 minutes ago, I talked to Secretary Markwayne Mullen of the Department of Homeland Security about the incident in Biddeford. Here’s what I learned, and here’s what I conveyed to him. The individual who has been killed is a male in his 20s. That’s all I know about him. He had been given an order to leave the country. He was in a vehicle, pulled out in the vehicle, and the term the secretary used was “weaponized” the vehicle and was shot by an ICE agent. What I said to the Secretary was, we want a full, transparent and open investigation of this matter. And one of the problems is apparently, and again, everything I’m saying is what I know now, certain facts may come out, but apparently there are no cameras. Body cameras were not on the agents. So, we have no video evidence of what occurred in this case. State and local officials, of course, are attending to it. The FBI will be leading the investigation because it was a federal operation, but my belief is that our state and local officials should also be kept informed and engaged in the investigation.
The shooting bears a striking similarity to the Houston shooting that occurred six days prior. As reported by Breitbart Texas, the shooting death of Lorenzo Salgado-Araujo occurred on Tuesday in Houston during a targeted enforcement operation where the 52-year-old Salgado-Araujo allegedly attempted to flee and then reportedly attempted to run over an officer with his vehicle. Shortly after the shooting, ICE officials identified Salgado-Araujo as a Mexican national illegally present in the United States.
In a statement obtained by Breitbart Texas after the incident, agency officials said they were attempting to stop a vehicle as part of a “targeted immigration enforcement operation to arrest an illegal alien.”
“From information we are receiving, he rammed an ICE law enforcement vehicle, refused to follow multiple verbal commands, and weaponized his vehicle in an attempt to run over an ICE law enforcement officer, resulting in our officer firing his weapon in self-defense,” the ICE official statement read.
As with the earlier shooting in Houston, the agents involved, according to King’s conversation with Mullen, were not equipped with body-worn cameras. DHS addressed the issue in the aftermath of the Houston shooting through a spokesperson who indicated the lack of equipment was due to back-to-back government shutdowns.
The illegal alien shot and killed during the incident in Maine has not been officially identified by authorities. However, a report by the Bangor Daily News indicates the decedent may be a 26-year-old Colombian national.
In another striking similarity, as occurred in the aftermath of the Houston shooting, an impromptu anti-ICE protest broke out almost immediately. Monday’s protest began in Mechanics Park in Biddeford within hours of the shooting. As reported by Breitbart Texas, several protests in Houston and San Antonio have been held to protest ICE enforcement actions in Texas and elsewhere across the country. The protests in Texas, organized by several leftist groups that include the Party for Socialism and Liberation, continue to call for a complete abolishment of ICE.
Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol. Before his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @RandyClarkBBTX.
Editor’s Note: This is a developing story and will be updated as new information becomes available.
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