MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal authorities have opened a criminal probe into whether two immigration officers lied under oath about a shooting in Minneapolis last month, as all charges were dropped against two Venezuelan men.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons said Friday that his agency opened a joint probe with the Justice Department after video evidence revealed “sworn testimony provided by two separate officers appears to have made untruthful statements” about the shooting of one of the Venezuelan men during the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown across the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.
The officers, whose names were not disclosed, are on administrative leave while the investigation is carried out, he said. Lyons said the two ICE officers could be fired and face criminal prosecution.
“Lying under oath is a serious federal offense,” said Lyons, adding that the U.S. attorney’s office is actively investigating.
“The men and women of ICE are entrusted with upholding the rule of law and are held to the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, and ethical conduct,” Lyons said. “Violations of this sacred sworn oath will not be tolerated. ICE remains fully committed to transparency, accountability, and the fair enforcement of our nation’s immigration laws.”
Earlier Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Paul A. Magnuson dismissed felony assault charges against Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna and Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, who were accused of beating an ICE officer with a broom handle and a snow shovel during a Jan. 14 fracas. The officer fired a single shot from his handgun, striking Sosa-Celis in his right thigh.
The cases were dropped after a highly unusual motion to dismiss from U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota Daniel N. Rosen, who said “newly discovered evidence” was “materially inconsistent with the allegations” made against the two men in a criminal complaint and at a hearing last month.
The reversal follows a string of high-profile shootings involving federal immigration agents in which eyewitness statements and video evidence have called into question claims made to justify using deadly force. Dozens of felony cases against protesters accused of assaulting or impeding federal officers have also crumbled.
The immigration lawyer representing Aljorna and Sosa-Celis said they are “overjoyed” that all charges have been dismissed. Had they been convicted, the two immigrants would have faced years in federal prison.
“The charges against them were based on lies by an ICE agent who recklessly shot into their home through a closed door,” said attorney Brian D. Clark. “They are so happy justice is being served.”
It is unclear whether the men could still be deported.
A chase, claims of an attack and a shot fired
Last month, an FBI investigator said in a now-discredited court affidavit that ICE officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a vehicle driven by Aljorna on Jan. 14. He crashed the vehicle and fled on foot toward the apartment duplex where he lived. An immigration officer chased Aljorna who — according to the government — violently resisted arrest.
The complaint alleged Sosa-Celis and another man attacked the officer with a snow shovel and a broom handle as the officer and Aljorna struggled on the ground. The officer, who is not named in court filings, fired his handgun, striking Sosa-Celis. The men ran into an apartment and eventually were arrested.
After the shooting, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem attacked Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, accusing the Democrats of “encouraging impeding and assault against our law enforcement which is a federal crime, a felony.”
“What we saw last night in Minneapolis was an attempted murder of federal law enforcement,” Noem said in a Jan. 15 statement. “Our officer was ambushed and attacked by three individuals who beat him with snow shovels and the handles of brooms. Fearing for his life, the officer fired a defensive shot.”
The Department of Homeland Security did not responded Friday to questions about whether Noem stands by those statements, which ICE — part of DHS — says are now under investigation.
Robin M. Wolpert, a defense attorney for Sosa-Celis in the criminal case, said she was pleased ICE and the Justice Department are publicly acknowledging and investigating apparent untruthful statements by the two ICE officers.
“These untruthful statements had serious consequences for my client and his family,” Wolpert said. “My client is a crime victim.”
Clark, the immigration lawyer for Aljorna and Sosa-Celis, urged the government to release the name of the ICE officer who shot his client and charge him.
Court filings show state authorities have opened their own criminal investigation into the shooting, though the FBI has thus far refused to share evidence, provide the name of the ICE officer who fired his weapon or make him available for an interview.
Holes already apparent in prosecution case
Rosen’s motion seeking to drop the charges did not detail what new evidence had emerged or what falsehoods had been in the government’s prior filings, but cracks began to appear in the government’s case during a Jan. 21 court hearing to determine whether the accused men could be released pending trial.
In court, the ICE officer’s account of the moments before the shooting differed significantly from testimony from the two defendants and three eyewitnesses. Available video evidence did not support the ICE officer’s account of being assaulted with a broom and snow shovel.
Aljorna and Sosa-Celis denied assaulting the officer. Testimony from a neighbor and the men’s romantic partners also did not support the agent’s account that he had been attacked with a broom or shovel or that a third person was involved.
Frederick Goetz, a lawyer representing Aljorna, said his client had a broomstick in his hand and threw it at the agent as he ran toward the house. Wolpert, representing Sosa-Celis, said he had been holding a shovel but was retreating into the home when the officer fired, wounding him. The men’s attorneys said the prosecution’s case relied wholly on testimony from the agent who fired the gun.
Neither Aljorna and Sosa-Celis had violent criminal records. Both had been working as DoorDash delivery drivers at night in an attempt to avoid encounters with federal agents, their attorneys said.
Aljorna and Sosa-Celis retreated into their upstairs apartment and barricaded the door, so federal officers used tear gas to try to force the men out, the FBI agent said. Concerned about the safety of two children under 2 inside the home, Aljorna and Sosa-Celis surrendered.
A third Venezuelan man, Gabriel Alejandro Hernandez Ledezma, who lived in the apartment downstairs was also arrested.
Though he was never federally charged, a Jan. 30 court petition seeking his release says Hernandez Ledezma was detained without a warrant and within hours flown to an ICE detention facility in Texas. He alleges his removal was to prevent him becoming a material eyewitness who could undercut the federal government’s case and help the Minnesota state investigation.
Hernandez Ledezma was returned to Minnesota and discharged from ICE custody on Monday after a federal judge ordered his release.
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Biesecker reported from Washington.