DHS says ICE agents suspended for ‘untruthful’ testimony in nonfatal Minneapolis shooting

Two ICE agents involved in an enforcement action in Minneapolis that led to one man shot in the leg last month lied while giving sworn testimony about the encounter and are under investigation, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

The acknowledgment in a statement from Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin on Feb. 13 comes one day after federal prosecutors moved to drop criminal charges against two Venezuelan men whose highly publicized arrests on Jan. 14 have been in dispute since conflicting accounts emerged from DHS officials and defense attorneys.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said that “newly discovered evidence” in the case against 24-year-old Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis and 26-year-old Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna is “materially inconsistent” with the allegations initially brought against them in a criminal complaint.

As anticipated, charges were dropped on Feb. 13 against both men.

In her statement, McLaughlin nodded to the evidence being cited, saying, “A joint review by ICE and the Department of Justice of video evidence has revealed that sworn testimony provided by two separate officers appears to have [included] untruthful statements.”

McLaughlin said both officers have been immediately placed on administrative leave “pending the completion of a thorough internal investigation” by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Once the investigation is complete, she added, “the officers may face termination of employment as well as potential criminal prosecution.”

The moments leading up to his and Aljorna’s arrests have been weighed in court as different accounts emerged between the men’s families, lawyers and the DHS, which insisted the agent fired a defensive shot that struck Sosa-Celis while being attacked with a snow shovel and broom outside a North Side residence. Sosa-Celis was not the original target of the enforcement action.

In a statement to the Minnesota Star Tribune on Thursday, Brian Clark, an attorney representing Sosa-Celis, said, “The charges against them were based on lies by an ICE agent who recklessly shot into their home through a closed door.”

Frederick Goetz, attorney for Aljorna, applauded the U.S. Attorney’s Office for “doing the right thing” in moving to dismiss the case.

“Their office has been in a state of turmoil,” Goetz said, referring to the recent exodus of federal attorneys amid controversial directives by the Trump administration. “But it’s so heartening to see that the integrity and professionalism we’ve come to expect from that office is still there.”

“The rule of law is still followed here in Minnesota.”

“It just shows the danger of jumping to conclusions and saying things before you know the facts,” Goetz added. “The facts are often as not as initially represented — especially with individuals who might have a motive to say things that are not true to cover themselves.”

On the night of the encounter, an agent pursued Aljorna for several miles before he crashed outside his apartment, according to an affidavit. The agent chased Aljorna and, according to court records, a scuffle ensued. Officials alleged Aljorna and Sosa-Celis beat the officer with a snow shovel and a broom.

The agent fired one shot, the affidavit said, and the bullet passed through Sosa-Celis’ thigh. Exactly when the agent fired, however, was heavily debated in court. U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson repeatedly questioned prosecutors on whether the shot was fired before or after the men entered the duplex.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Syngen Kanassatega replied that the government had not yet been provided such evidence. Goetz showed Magnuson photos on his laptop showing a single bullet hole through the front door of the home.

The men lived on the top floor of the duplex with their toddler sons and 19-year-old partners. The young women were taken to a Texas immigration facility shortly after the arrests.