A US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent, Christian Castro, has been indicted on six federal charges for allegedly lying about a January shooting of a Venezuelan migrant in Minnesota. The Department of Homeland Security originally claimed Castro fired in self-defence after being attacked with a shovel and broom handle, but investigators now allege he shot through a closed door, wounding the man in the leg. It is unusual for the current US justice department to accuse one of its own federal agents of criminal wrongdoing while on duty.

Castro was deployed to Minnesota as part of Operation Metro Surge, a mass immigration crackdown that triggered widespread protests and saw two US citizens killed by agents during confrontations. Surveillance footage cast doubt on the official account, prompting an investigation that led ICE to admit in February that agents may have made "untruthful statements"; charges against the migrants who were originally accused of assaulting officers were subsequently dropped. Castro, not currently in custody, also faces Minnesota state charges of assault and false reporting; he was detained in Texas for three months before being released last week after Governor Greg Abbott declined an extradition request, citing doubts over his fugitive status.