The fatal shooting of a motorist by an immigration agent in Biddeford, Maine, on Monday is the latest in a series of deaths tied to US President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign. At least nine people have died during immigration enforcement operations since Trump returned to office.
The government’s version of events has been repeatedly challenged by witnesses, relatives and, in some cases, video evidence. Senator Angus King said Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin told him the man had “weaponized” his vehicle against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, prompting the officer to open fire. However, witness accounts have challenged that version of events, saying the man’s car was moving slowly in circles and did not appear to be trying to strike officers.
In Houston, Texas, on July 7, an immigration agent shot dead Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national who, his family said, had been working towards legal status in the US. Authorities said he tried to evade arrest and rammed his vehicle into an agent. Following his death, Mexico said it will ask the US government to open criminal investigations into the deaths of its citizens in immigration enforcement operations.
In March 2025, a federal agent shot dead Ruben Ray Martinez, a 23-year-old US citizen, in South Padre Island, Texas. Officials said Martinez intentionally ran over an agent, but family members said video contradicted the agents’ account. Martinez’s mother said Texas Rangers investigators told her video of the incident contradicted the federal agents’ account.
In Minneapolis on January 24, a Border Patrol officer shot dead Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse and US citizen, during a protest against immigration operations. Federal authorities initially described Pretti as an armed agitator, but bystander video showed him on the ground holding a mobile phone. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called the federal characterizations “despicable”.
In January, an ICE officer shot dead Renee Good, a US citizen acting as a legal observer during protests in Minneapolis. Video showed Good turning her car away from the officer, but the Trump administration defended the shooting. Her death sparked nationwide protests.
In suburban Chicago on September 12, an immigration agent shot dead Silverio Villegas Gonzalez, a Mexican line cook. Officials alleged he dragged an officer with his vehicle, but local police video later showed the agent describing his injuries as “nothing major”.
During immigration raids on California cannabis farms on July 10, Jaime Alanis, a 57-year-old Mexican farmworker, died after falling about 9 meters from a greenhouse roof. Authorities said he was not being pursued.
In August, Roberto Carlos Montoya Valdez, a 52-year-old Guatemalan, died after being hit by an SUV while trying to cross a freeway during an immigration operation near Los Angeles.
In October, Josue Castro Rivera, a 24-year-old Honduran, was struck by a pickup truck while trying to cross a highway during an immigration traffic stop in Norfolk, Virginia. He was on his way to a gardening job.
Source: www.aljazeera.com