“Weaponized vehicle.”

How many times have we heard that phrase after ICE puts bullet holes in an unsuspecting victim? We heard it after Renee Good. We heard it after the ICE shooting of Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez. We heard it after the shooting of Ruben Ray Martinez, among others. It’s almost like it’s ICE policy to start slinging lead once a car moves a millimeter toward them. Now, we can add the name of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo to that list.

Around 6:50 am local time this morning, ICE agents tried to pull over Salgado Araujo near Canal Street and Wayside Drive in Houston’s East End, part of what the agency called a “targeted enforcement operation.” I believe that’s ICE-speak for, “We were driving around the Home Depot parking lot”.

According to ICE, Salgado Araujo “rammed” one of their vehicles, ignored verbal commands, and tried to run over an officer, which is why, they say, that officer opened fire “in self-defense.” He was shot in the abdomen and rushed to Ben Taub Hospital, where he later died from his wounds. From what I understand, that’s one of the more slow and painful ways to die.

Witnesses at the scene were reportedly crying, and at least one of his sons watched the whole thing happen. Surveillance video has surfaced showing agents standing over him next to his truck, though it doesn’t capture whatever led up to that moment, which is, of course, the part that actually matters.

We’re told the FBI will be handling the investigation, but forgive me if that doesn’t fill me with confidence. DHS, ICE, and the FBI are all currently run by people who didn’t get their jobs through competence or qualifications. They got them by being toadies to the tangerine-tinged sex pest of a president. Expecting a rigorous, honest investigation out of that chain of command is like expecting a child molester to file a thorough report on the kid who got away.

Salgado Araujo wasn’t out causing trouble that morning. He was picking up day laborers for a construction job. If you’re one of those people who thinks day laborers took yer jerbs, I’d encourage you to have a conversation with the contractors and construction companies who hire them for a fraction of what the job is worth instead of blaming the guy standing on the corner hoping to earn an honest wage.

He’d also been in this country for nearly 35 years, raising a family and working construction that whole time, and he was in the process of getting his work permit through the legal system when he was killed.

Frankly, none of that should matter. Whether someone is a citizen, a green card holder, or undocumented, masked agents shouldn’t be executing people in the street. That’s not how a free and open democracy is supposed to function. It’s how a police state operates. Some people even have a word for that particular flavor of government, and it starts with an ‘F’ and ends with an ‘ascism.’

Once again, we don’t even know the name of the person who pulled the trigger. If a Houston police officer had shot someone under these circumstances, we’d know his name within a day, and there would be an actual public process to follow. With ICE, DHS, and this abysmal administration, the public gets treated like mushrooms, kept in the dark and fed nothing but bullshit. Given how these things usually go, don’t be surprised if this masked killer gets quietly reassigned to another city, the way Renee Good’s killer reportedly was, and is back on duty within a matter of weeks.

And here’s the part that really burns my ass. The FBI isn’t even investigating the shooting itself. They’re investigating a supposed “assault on a federal officer.” A man is dead, and the federal government’s official response is to open a file on him, not on the guy who killed him.

That’s not just tone-deaf; it’s insulting.

(Sources)

• ICE agent fatally shoots motorist during traffic stop in Houston
• Man fatally shot by ICE officer during traffic stop in Houston
• Man shot and killed by ICE officer during targeted operation in Houston’s East End, federal officials say
• ICE Houston shooting: Man killed by ICE officer near Canal Street, Wayside Drive, family member reacts