The costs stem from the January 14 capturing of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in Minneapolis throughout Operation Metro Surge.
An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent charged with capturing a Venezuelan man throughout a controversial immigration raid in Minnesota has been arrested in Texas, in line with United States authorities.
Agent Christian Castro, 52, was taken into custody on Friday after investigators from Minnesota tracked him down within the southern state, the place he was arrested with help from the Texas Rangers and the Division of Homeland Safety’s (DHS) inspector common’s workplace. He faces 4 counts of second-degree assault and one rely of falsely reporting against the law.
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The costs stem from the non-fatal capturing on January 14 of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in Minneapolis throughout Operation Metro Surge, a large-scale immigration enforcement marketing campaign that drew widespread criticism for its aggressive techniques.
Prosecutors allege Castro fired by means of the entrance door of a residence, hanging Sosa-Celis within the leg.
“Mr Castro was charged earlier this month with 4 counts of second-degree assault and one rely of falsely reporting against the law for an incident on January 14, 2026, when he discharged his weapon by means of the entrance door of a house figuring out there have been individuals who had simply run inside,” the Hennepin County Lawyer’s Workplace mentioned in a statement.
“The bullet travelled by means of the door and struck one sufferer within the leg earlier than making its remaining impression within the wall of a kid’s room.”
Minnesota officers welcomed Castro’s arrest, saying federal brokers must be held to the identical authorized requirements as everybody else.
“In Minnesota, we imagine in equal justice beneath the legislation. Meaning no person is above the legislation, together with brokers of the federal authorities,” mentioned Minnesota Lawyer Common Keith Ellison. “I’m happy to listen to Christian Castro has been taken into custody and can stand trial for the crimes he allegedly dedicated in Minnesota.”
Operation Metro Surge faces rising authorized scrutiny
The case turned a flashpoint after federal authorities initially claimed Sosa-Celis and one other man had assaulted ICE officers.
These allegations later unravelled when video and different proof emerged that contradicted brokers’ accounts, prompting prosecutors to drop costs towards Sosa-Celis and his housemate, Alfredo Aljorna.
The DHS later acknowledged that officers concerned within the incident had offered false details about the capturing.
The outgoing director of ICE, Todd Lyons, additionally indicated a federal investigation was beneath method. “Mendacity beneath oath is a severe federal offense,” he mentioned.
However by means of a spokesperson, ICE rejected Minnesota’s effort to prosecute the agent concerned, calling the case “illegal” and “a political stunt”.
Castro is the second federal officer charged this 12 months in reference to Operation Metro Surge, an uncommon step that displays rising scrutiny of federal brokers’ conduct throughout the immigration crackdown.
Hennepin County Lawyer Mary Moriarty can also be pursuing investigations into different incidents linked to the operation.
Operation Metro Surge started in Minnesota in December 2025. By the point Sosa-Celis was shot on January 14, tons of of federal brokers had been deployed throughout the Minneapolis-St Paul space in what officers described as the biggest DHS operation in US historical past.
The crackdown in the end prompted intense controversy, notably after the deadly shootings of two US residents: Renee Good on January 7 and Alex Pretti on January 24.
Towards that backdrop, the investigation into the Sosa-Celis capturing additional intensified scrutiny of federal brokers’ techniques and conduct throughout the operation.
