Indictment details alleged lies by ICE officer charged in Minneapolis shooting
The federal indictment against ICE officer Christian Castro has been unsealed, detailing charges accusing him of lying to investigators about a north Minneapolis shooting of a Venezuelan immigrant in January.
Castro, who works for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was released from custody last week after Republican Gov. Greg Abbott didn't sign an extradition warrant sought by Minnesota prosecutors before a 90-day holding period expired.
He was charged by the Department of Justice with six counts of making false statements to investigators and was taken into custody in Texas late Thursday. He made his initial court appearance Friday.
The shooting at the center of the case occurred during the Trump administration's federal immigration surge in Minnesota, just a week after agents killed Renee Good.
Court documents allege Castro shot Julio Sosa-Celis through the door of his home on Jan. 14 while two children were inside, then lied to investigators. Ultimately, surveillance video threw the accounts of Castro and other officers into doubt.
According to the unsealed federal indictment, Castro allegedly lied about his own position when he fired — claiming he was on his back at the time — in addition to lying about being attacked by multiple assailants. The indictment indicates Castro also tried to exaggerate what documents outline as an 11-second scuffle into a three-minute struggle.
Castro has been suspended without pay by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security as the investigation continues.
A federal prosecutor in Minnesota who was investigating Castro was fired, four sources familiar with the matter told CBS News. ProPublica reported earlier this week that Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Evans told Sosa-Celis' attorneys that Castro would be charged with making false statements, though he "objected in the strongest possible terms and fought it as hard as I could."
Sources told CBS News that Evans was under investigation by the Justice Department, with the probe focusing on allegations of leaking.
Nicole Sganga and Camilo Montoya-Galvez contributed to this report.
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