ICE agent arrested in Texas after Minneapolis shooting, false report allegations

Christian Castro, a 52-year-old U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, was arrested in Texas Friday morning after Hennepin County prosecutors accused him of shooting Julio Sosa-Celis in north Minneapolis and then falsely describing what happened. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said Castro was charged by warrant on May 18 with four counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of falsely reporting a crime, and that a nationwide arrest warrant had been issued.

Prosecutors allege Castro fired through the door of a home on Jan. 14, 2026, knowing multiple people were inside, including children. Sosa-Celis suffered a gunshot wound to the leg that was not life-threatening. The county attorney’s office said Castro’s version, which claimed he had been attacked with a broom and shovel, was contradicted by surveillance video, witness statements and physical evidence.

The case has become a referendum on how federal immigration enforcement operates inside Minneapolis neighborhoods. The shooting happened during Operation Metro Surge, a federal immigration-enforcement surge that triggered protests in north Minneapolis and sharp criticism from city and state leaders. The City of Minneapolis later released video from a city-owned camera on April 6 that challenged the federal account, showing the pursuit ending at the block and a brief altercation near the house. Court records later showed that the man initially targeted by ICE was not the same person agents encountered that night.

The legal fallout also widened beyond Castro. On Feb. 12, 2026, Minnesota U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen moved to dismiss the federal complaint against Sosa-Celis and Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna, saying newly discovered evidence was materially inconsistent with the complaint. Those charges were expected to be dismissed. Mary Moriarty said ICE Director Todd Lyons acknowledged that two ICE officers lied after the shooting, and she argued that Castro’s federal badge did not shield him from state prosecution.

The arrest came amid continuing anger over a string of January shootings tied to immigration enforcement in Minneapolis. Castro’s case followed the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good in south Minneapolis by one week and came 10 days before the shooting death of Alex Pretti in Uptown. As of the latest developments, the Justice Department had not charged officers involved in those January shootings, leaving state prosecutors and local officials to press the question of who will hold federal agents accountable when force is used in city streets.