An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer accused of shooting a Venezuelan immigrant — and then lying about it — was arrested Friday, escalating a conflict between state and federal officials over who can police the behavior of immigration agents.
Christian Castro, 52, was arrested in Texas by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, almost two weeks after the state filed charges against him. He faces four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime.
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“In Minnesota, we believe in equal justice under the law,” the state’s attorney general, Keith Ellison, said in a statement. “That means nobody is above the law, including agents of the federal government.”
Castro is the second ICE agent charged in Minnesota in connection with Operation Metro Surge, the aggressive immigration enforcement initiative last winter that resulted in the deaths of two protesters, Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
The charges against Castro and Gregory Morgan Jr., who is accused of pointing a gun at two people on a Minnesota highway, underscore the clash between states such as Minnesota and the federal government over immigration enforcement. Federal officials have asserted primacy over the conduct of agents from ICE and other immigration agencies, while state officials say the agents should be held to the same standards as local law enforcement officers.
Why was an ICE agent arrested?
The charges against Castro stem from an incident in Minneapolis on Jan. 14, when ICE agents in an unmarked car began chasing a man driving for DoorDash.
When the DoorDash driver tried to run inside the home, Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis ran outside and confronted the agents. When agents tried to arrest Sosa-Celis and his cousin, Alfredo A. Aljorna, Castro fired his weapon, striking Sosa-Celis in the leg.
Castro said later he fired because he feared for his life.
ICE charged Sosa-Celis and Aljorna, saying they attacked agents with a broomstick and a shovel.
But federal prosecutors dropped the charges in February after ICE said Castro and another agent made false statements about the incident. Both were placed on administrative leave.
Can Minnesota charge a federal agent?
Todd Lyons, who is stepping down as the interim ICE director this week, has said Castro was being investigated for lying under oath, a federal crime.
But ICE officials have described the state’s charges as “unlawful and nothing more than a political stunt.”
Minnesota prosecutors acknowledged they face an uphill battle, anticipating that Castro will attempt to have his case transferred to federal court.
Even if that happens, he would still be tried on state charges, which cannot be forgiven by presidential pardons.
“I am pleased to hear Christian Castro has been taken into custody and will stand trial for the crimes he allegedly committed in Minnesota,” Ellison said. “Justice demands no less.”
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