AUSTIN, Texas – A man who was shot and injured by a federal immigration enforcement officer on Sunday in Austin has lost movement on the entire left side of his body, according to his family’s attorney.
The man was identified as Wilber Rafael Garcés Perez, 28, of Venezuela, by his lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch.
Lincoln-Goldfinch told CNN Monday, Perez is facing paralysis after not receiving proper medical care for his injuries.
His attorney said he was taken back to a hospital Monday night to recover from the gunshot wound.
Perez was shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer on Sunday in Austin, according to city officials.
He was taken to a Austin hospital and was released within four hours. However, Lincoln-Goldfinch and U.S. Rep. Greg Casar (D-Austin) said Perez was released with a bullet inside the wound on his back.
In an email, the Department of Homeland Security told KSAT he was “stable” at 11:45 p.m. on Sunday.
KSAT asked DHS other questions about the shooting on Tuesday, including about the bullet still lodged in Perez’s back.
On Wednesday, DHS released a statement titled “Correct the Record,” pushing back on claims related to the shooting.
DHS said ICE did not refuse to remove the bullet, Perez did not have a valid work permit and that he is not in the country legally. The department also said he is receiving pain medication.
After his release, he was taken into federal custody around 4 a.m. Monday, Lincoln-Goldfinch said.
He was transported to a ICE detention facility in Pearsall around 10 a.m. the same day, according to his attorney.
>> Politicians, advocates call for release of Venezuelan man shot by ICE officer in Austin
Lincoln-Goldfinch said he had a valid work permit and entered the U.S. legally. She is filed a temporary restraining order in federal court on Monday to try and stop ICE from deporting Perez.
The Department of Homeland Security is leading the investigation.
“Homeland Security Investigations, with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, is leading the investigation into the officer involved shooting of an illegal alien from Venezuela, who illegally entered our country under the Biden administration and had a final order of removal, during a law enforcement operation today in Austin, TX,” a spokesperson for DHS said in an email to KSAT. “(Perez’s) condition is stable, and he is in federal custody pending removal.”
It is unclear what led up to the shooting, and DHS has not yet provided details.
There are conflicting reports about whether Perez was inside a vehicle or on foot, but Lincoln-Goldfinch said he was making a food delivery.
Lincoln-Goldfinch said the family hadn’t “been permitted to see him and have not received a meaningful update regarding his current status or circumstances.”
Sunday’s shooting is now at least the third instance of a ICE officer shooting a person in Texas since March 2025.
Timeline of events, according to local officials
Emergency crews were dispatched at 12:56 p.m. to a reported shooting, according to Austin-Travis County EMS Chief Rob Luckritz.
Paramedics arrived less than four minutes later and found an adult man with a gunshot wound. The man, later identified as Perez by his attorney, was transported to a local trauma center.
Perez was taken from the scene within nine minutes of crews arriving at the scene, Luckritz said.
Luckritz said the patient was taken from the scene within nine minutes of EMS crews’ arrival.
Sheridan Nolen, a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Public Safety, said state troopers received a call at around 12:50 p.m. from ICE officials asking for help in a pursuit of a blue Toyota Corolla. Before troopers arrived, the ICE agent had shot the man, Nolen said.
“Once they arrived, DPS Troopers immediately began assisting partner law enforcement agencies in performing medical treatment on the driver of the Toyota Corolla,” Nolen said.
Protesters gather at site of shooting
A crowd of protesters gathered at the scene of the shooting throughout the afternoon, shouting at officials on the scene.
Just before 6 p.m., officers shot pepper ball-like projectiles at the crowd after some demonstrators threw rocks and water bottles at law enforcement as some were readying to leave the area.
A 14-year-old boy was one of the ones impacted by the chemical, his father told Austin police.
Austin leaders seek independent investigation
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said at a news conference earlier in the day that he wants an independent investigation into the shooting, in part, because of the “chaos” he sees it causing.
Watson said he is “angry” but “not surprised at all” that an ICE agent has shot someone in the city. He said the shooting happened as immigration operations in Austin have picked up in the past few weeks.
Austin police and Texas Rangers plan to investigate the shooting along with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the federal agency that oversees immigration enforcement, Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said.
“If there’s nothing wrong with that, they should welcome an investigation. And if you’re pro law enforcement, you should see that an investigation that is done right will only enhance credibility,“ Watson said. “Austinites should know the truth, and I am pleased that we’re in a situation where Austin will also be involved in this investigation.”
Asked if Austin authorities knew where the involved federal agent is, given that agents have left states after previous shootings nationwide, the mayor said: “We do not know that. But my hope would be that, an agent that’s involved in an officer-involved shooting would not leave the city. Certainly not leave the state.”
U.S. Rep. Greg Casar, D-Austin, who also at Sunday’s news conference, said he supported outside agencies investigating the shooting because “ICE has not been truthful in shootings in other cities.”
“It is appropriate for this community to ask for independence, to ask for transparency, and to ask for accountability,” he said. “This is a pattern. It’s a disturbing pattern, and it’s got to stop.”
Police bodycam footage
The ICE officer involved in Sunday’s shooting in Austin was a recent hire and has been placed on administrative leave, according to new developments.
In a newly-released Austin Police bodycam video, authorities are seen removing Perez from his car as he appears to clutch his back.
Perez was handcuffed and sat on the curb while authorities cut his shirt open to reveal his bullet wound.
The Associated Press and Texas Tribune contributed to this report.
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