The Austin Police Department released body camera footage on Tuesday showing the arrest of Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan national shot by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers on Sunday. The visual record clarifies the sequence of events during the attempted custody transfer, specifically documenting the medical response and the physical handling of the suspect after the discharge of firearms. The release addresses conflicting narratives regarding how Garces Perez was moved from his vehicle following the incident.
The constraint here is the divergence between the agency's official account and the visual evidence provided by local law enforcement. ICE maintains that the subject was the target of a specific vehicle stop based on his immigration status. The department stated that the individual was illegally in the United States and that resisting officers and evading arrest constitutes a federal felony. This legal framework underpins the agency's justification for the use of force and the subsequent detention procedures. The narrative relies on the validity of the underlying enforcement action as the primary driver of the event.
The Physical Evidence
Three distinct video clips from the Austin Police Department detail the local response to the shooting. One recording captures the sound of what appears to be three gunshots. Another shows an officer arriving at the scene to find Garces Perez sitting hunched over in the driver's seat of his vehicle. He is seen clutching his left shoulder in apparent pain. Officers wearing body cameras assist him out of the car, a detail that contradicts claims that he was forcibly pulled out by federal agents. The footage shows the team placing him under arrest after he exits the vehicle.
During the extraction, an officer orders someone to retrieve shears to cut open Garces Perez's shirt for wound examination. In the same clip, an officer asks in Spanish if the suspect possesses any firearms. Garces Perez replies that he does not. Another officer notes that he appears to have one gunshot wound. The local police response focused on immediate medical assessment and securing the scene while federal agents maintained custody.
Legal Status and Agency Response
Authorities confirmed that Garces Perez held a final order of removal. His attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, argues that the client received the hearing notice at a previous address despite having updated his contact information with the court. She also claims an unmarked truck chased her client and sideswiped his vehicle before the shooting occurred. Garces Perez was reportedly delivering a DoorDash order when he made a U-turn under a highway, prompting the pursuit.
ICE has disputed the characterization of the incident as indiscriminate. The agency notes that Garces Perez's work permit expired in 2025 and that holding such a document does not confer legal status. The agency stated that the suspect was released from the hospital and transferred to an ICE detention facility hours later. ICE emphasized that the individual was the subject of a targeted stop, warning that sanctuary policies encourage dangerous behavior that risks the safety of officers and the public.