Additional Coverage:
- Witness in Houston fatal ICE shooting released from immigration detention, visits memorial (nbcnews.com)
Witness in Houston ICE Shooting Released from Detention After Weeks in Custody
HOUSTON – Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego, a key witness to a fatal shooting involving a federal immigration agent, was released from detention Wednesday after several weeks in custody following the deadly encounter on July 7.
Rojas Pliego was one of three men traveling in a work van driven by Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, who was fatally shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer.
The shooting occurred after federal agents, operating unmarked vehicles, stopped the van. Rojas Pliego has challenged the official account presented by the Trump administration, describing it as false in court filings.
A federal judge ordered Rojas Pliego’s release this week and also barred the government from deporting him, citing concerns over his prolonged detention. According to his stepdaughter, Griselda Silva, Rojas Pliego has lived in the United States for decades but lacks legal status. She added that the family cannot afford the legal costs associated with adjusting his immigration status.
Shortly after Rojas Pliego’s release, federal prosecutors requested a stay, seeking to delay his freedom pending an appeal. They argued that the judge’s ruling conflicted with precedents set in other immigration cases.
After leaving detention, Rojas Pliego, who is now under surveillance with an ankle monitor, visited the memorial for Salgado Araujo. Reflecting on the tragic event, he said in Spanish, “We were on our way to work when they took Lorenzo Salgado’s life.
Instead of providing immediate aid, they handcuffed him and pushed him to the ground. That’s not right.
I want justice for Lorenzo Salgado, my boss.”
The Department of Homeland Security initially stated that Salgado Araujo had “weaponized his vehicle in an attempt to run over an ICE law enforcement officer,” justifying the officer’s use of deadly force as self-defense. However, Rojas Pliego and another passenger testified that the agents were positioned on the sides of the van, never in front or behind it.
Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old father of three, had lived in the U.S. for 35 years and was close to securing legal status, according to his family. He had no criminal record. His death marks one of at least ten fatalities connected to immigration enforcement operations since the launch of the Trump administration’s intensified deportation efforts, triggering protests in Houston and demands for an independent investigation.
At the memorial site, Rojas Pliego played a song on his phone and shared his deep sense of loss. “I worked alongside him through thick and thin-my whole life,” he said, calling Salgado Araujo a “good boss.”
He concluded, “Rest in peace. I couldn’t be present at your funeral, but you have me here now.”