Law enforcement officers arrested an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in Texas on Friday, May 29, 2026, over allegations he shot a Venezuelan national in Minnesota and provided false testimony under oath.
Authorities issued an arrest warrant earlier this month for 52-year-old Christian Castro, who faces four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension tracked Castro to Texas, where he was taken into custody by the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General and Texas Rangers.
“Today’s arrest is a critical step forward in our prosecution of Mr. Castro,” said Mary Moriarty, Hennepin County Attorney.
The criminal charges stem from a January 14 immigration enforcement action in Minneapolis targeting Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan national who allegedly entered the United States illegally in August 2022.
According to Homeland Security officials, Sosa-Celis fled a traffic stop and sought refuge inside a residential home.
Investigators stated that Castro discharged his firearm through the front door of the residence without verifying who was inside.
The bullet pierced the door, striking a victim in the leg before embedding itself into the wall of a child's bedroom, according to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office.
Following the gunfire, federal authorities accused Sosa-Celis and another Venezuelan citizen, Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna, of assaulting law enforcement with a broom handle and a snow shovel.
However, a federal judge dismissed those charges, which triggered an investigation into whether two ICE agents committed perjury regarding the confrontation.
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Court records revealed that the official accounts provided by the officers conflicted sharply with testimony from the two defendants and three eyewitnesses.
Furthermore, available video evidence failed to substantiate the claims that an officer was attacked with household tools.
The prosecutor's office identified Castro as the second federal agent charged under Operation Metro Surge, a massive immigration enforcement initiative in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region.
The Department of Homeland Security previously described the initiative as its largest immigration operation to date.
“Both officers have been immediately placed on administrative leave pending the completion of a thorough internal investigation,” said Todd Lyons, ICE Director.
“Lying under oath is a serious federal offense,” Lyons added.
Community tensions intensified during the multi-week operation, which also drew severe public scrutiny and sparked widespread protests following the fatal shootings of U.
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S. citizens Renée Good and Alex Pretti by federal officers.
