At Least 21 People Shot By Federal Immigration Agents During Trump’s Second Term, ABC News Finds

ABC News has documented at least 21 incidents in which federal immigration agents fired their weapons during President Donald Trump’s second term. Eight of those shootings were fatal — including the deaths of three U.S. citizens — and investigators identified at least 15 additional episodes where agents discharged firearms but did not injure anyone.

Eric Gay/AP Photo - PHOTO: Elizdar, wife of Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a Venezuelan man shot by an ICE officer, right, stands with attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, left, during a news conference in Austin, Texas, September 21, 2026.

Latest Case: Austin, Texas

The most recent incident occurred on Sunday in Austin, when an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer shot Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a Venezuelan man working as a DoorDash delivery driver. Garces Perez’s attorney, Kat Lincoln-Goldfinch, says he is legally in the country and has applied for asylum. Local officials played Austin Police Department body-camera footage during a news briefing; law enforcement sources told ABC News the ICE officer involved in the shooting was not wearing a body-worn camera.

Austin Police Department via AP - PHOTO: In this image taken from an Austin Police Department officer's body camera video shown at a news conference, September 22, 2026, officers inspect Wilber Rafael Garces Perez's wound after he was shot by an ICE agent.

Government Response

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) defended ICE’s presence in Austin, saying the agency is tasked with enforcing laws passed by Congress and that ICE "will not be slowing down or leaving Austin." DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin pushed back on calls from city leaders and some House Democrats to withdraw ICE, criticizing "sanctuary politicians" and asserting that ICE arrests dangerous criminals in Texas.

Sara Diggins/The San Antonio Express-News via AP - PHOTO: Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis, left, and Mayor Kirk Watson watch as footage from a body-worn camera is played during a news conferenc, September 22, 2026, providing an update after an ICE agent shot and wounded Wilber Garces Perez.

Families, Lawmakers and Advocates React

The Austin shooting intensified scrutiny of the administration’s deportation operations and prompted a joint congressional hearing with families of people killed or wounded in ICE-related shootings. Donna Granger, mother of Renee Good — a 37-year-old Minneapolis woman fatally shot by an ICE agent in January — told lawmakers she had supported Mr. Trump but now wants answers and accountability. The ICE agent involved in Good’s death has not been charged.

The family of Lorenzo Salgado, a 52-year-old Mexican man killed by an ICE agent in Houston in July, told the hearing they still have not received key belongings or clear information about the circumstances of his death. Community leaders and immigrant-rights groups, including LULAC and the Grassroots Leadership Immigration Campaign, have called for independent investigations and for ICE to leave Austin.

“There was hope that ICE would abandon the physical brutality and inhumanity of its tactics on the streets,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said. “There was hope that there would be accountability. That hope has been vanished. Most recently, just days ago in Austin, Texas.”

ABC News reporters Ely Brown and Luke Barr contributed reporting to this story.