FBI probes drug evidence in Houston ICE shooting

Federal investigators have obtained a search warrant for a van involved in a fatal shooting by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Houston, citing the observation of suspected illegal drugs inside the vehicle. The warrant, filed on July 14, states FBI agents saw a white crystal-like substance packaged in small plastic bags in plain view inside the white Ford Transit cargo van.

The driver of the van, 52-year-old Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national and construction worker, was shot and killed by an ICE agent on July 7. According to authorities, ICE agents were conducting a targeted enforcement operation when they began following the van. Officials stated that neither Salgado Araujo nor the three passengers, including his brother, were the intended targets of that operation. The Department of Homeland Security said the van refused to stop, drove over a median in an apparent attempt to flee, and was later relocated. Agents stated that Salgado Araujo then weaponized his vehicle, ramming an ICE vehicle and attempting to run over an ICE officer, who fired in self-defense. Salgado Araujo was struck in the abdomen and later died at a hospital.