Months-long extradition fight ends with Minnesota arrest
An ICE agent wanted on Minnesota assault and false-reporting charges for shooting a Venezuelan man through an apartment door was arrested in Minneapolis on Wednesday by state agents, after spending months in Texas custody in a case that crossed two state court systems and two governors.
Christian Castro, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, was taken into custody by agents of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and booked into the Hennepin county jail on his outstanding arrest warrant, the state agency said.
Castro had been released on bond from federal custody earlier this month after an initial appearance in a district court in McAllen, Texas, on charges of lying to investigators about the circumstances of the Jan. 14 shooting.
Under an arrangement with Minnesota law enforcement, Castro had voluntarily driven to Minneapolis from Texas to turn himself in to state authorities at his attorney’s office but was arrested minutes before he was due to arrive, attorney Daniel Gerdts told Reuters.
Another lawyer representing Castro, Rolando Cantu, said his client had always intended to answer the charges in Minneapolis. He disputed Hennepin County prosecutors’ assertions that Castro might flee to Mexico, saying: “He wants his day in court.”
The federal indictment charging Castro with making false statements marked the first Justice Department prosecution of a federal law enforcement officer accused of wrongdoing arising from Operation Metro Surge — the large-scale Minneapolis ICE deployment that drew weeks of protests and clashes between ICE agents and demonstrators and preceded the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal agents.
Castro already faced state assault charges in Minnesota stemming from the confrontation in which he shot Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan national, in the leg through the door of the man’s apartment while children were present inside the home.
The state charges also include false reporting of a crime after Castro allegedly told superiors at the Department of Homeland Security that Sosa-Celis and others attacked him with a snow shovel and broom, a claim disproved by video evidence.
Initial efforts to arrest Castro were thwarted when the ICE agent returned to his home state of Texas, leading Minnesota officials to issue a warrant for his arrest. Castro was apprehended by Texas Rangers, but Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, refused to sign extradition papers sent by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat.
Abbott questioned whether Castro could be considered a fugitive from justice, and thus subject to extradition, because DHS had reassigned him to his home state of Texas after the Minneapolis shooting.
Castro ultimately spent 90 days in a Texas county jail and was released on Aug. 27 after a federal judge in Texas denied a request from Minnesota to immediately order his extradition. Castro was re-arrested in Texas after a federal grand jury indictment in early September.
DHS has suspended Castro from ICE, and a person familiar with the case has said a civil rights investigation into the Sosa-Celis shooting had been opened.
Castro was expected to make his first state court appearance in Minneapolis on Thursday. He will then make an initial appearance in a District Court in neighboring St. Paul, the state capital, on Friday to face charges in the federal indictment.
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty, who brought the state case, said in a statement: “Governor Abbott’s attempt to shield Mr Castro from accountability has failed. We look forward to commencing our prosecution.”