Federal prosecutors charge ICE agent for lying under oath about nonfatal Minnesota shooting

What This is

• Federal prosecutors charged ICE officer Christian Castro with making false statements about a January shooting during an immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota.
• Minnesota prosecutors say Castro fired through the door of a home and wounded 24-year-old Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, described as a Venezuelan immigrant.
• Federal prosecutors said Castro was indicted on six counts tied to alleged false statements about the shooting.
• Authorities say video evidence contradicted officers’ early accounts of what happened, and it helped drive the false-statement case against Castro.
• Minnesota has also charged Castro with second-degree assault and falsely reporting a crime under state law.
• An extradition fight between Minnesota and Texas has delayed Castro being sent back to Minnesota, including after Texas Governor Greg Abbott declined to sign an extradition warrant.

Why This Matters

• The case centers on whether the public can trust what federal officers say under oath, especially when body and doorbell video can test official accounts.
• It highlights the risks of armed immigration raids in homes, where split-second decisions can injure people who were not the target.
• The extradition fight shows how politics and procedure can slow criminal cases when an accused officer is held in another state.
• The outcome could shape how aggressively agencies discipline agents and how prosecutors handle false statements in use-of-force incidents.