A Venezuelan man shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent during a traffic stop in Austin, Texas, remains in detention while seeking surgery to remove a bullet lodged in his back. Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, was shot Sunday afternoon while delivering food for DoorDash, according to accounts from his lawyer and local officials.

Greg Casar, a Democratic congressman representing Austin, visited Garces Perez at a detention center in Pearsall, Texas, on Wednesday and called on federal authorities to expedite the man’s medical care. Casar said Garces Perez was advised by a doctor that surgery is necessary to remove the bullet near his neck. The congressman described the detained man as being in poor physical condition, relying on a wheelchair and wearing a sling on his left arm, and said he had received an injection for pain relief that day.

Garces Perez has been transported twice to a hospital since the shooting but was subsequently returned to detention, and his lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, has stated that he remains in isolation and enduring significant pain. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees ICE, has denied allegations that medical care is being withheld and said he is receiving continuous treatment.

The shooting occurred after Garces Perez reported that a black SUV struck his vehicle and then activated police lights following the collision. Garces Perez told a media briefing that he initially believed the SUV was driven aggressively but continued driving until the car was stopped, at which point he was shot. DHS representatives have disputed aspects of his account.

The ICE agent involved in the incident was hired last year, according to current and former law enforcement officials who spoke anonymously given the ongoing investigation. The officer was not wearing a body camera when the shooting took place, complicating efforts to review the circumstances.

Garces Perez, who entered the United States earlier in 2024 seeking asylum, has since obtained a work permit. His attorney has explained that a missed immigration hearing, stemming from a change of address that went unreported, led to a deportation order against him. He is scheduled to appear before an immigration judge in San Antonio next week, where his legal team will seek his release and the opportunity to apply for legal status.

This shooting marks the second incident involving an ICE agent in Texas since July and adds to a series of confrontations between immigration agents and individuals in vehicles nationwide. Since 2017, more than 20 people have been shot by ICE officers, with several cases proving fatal.

The DHS’s Homeland Security Investigations unit and the FBI are conducting a joint investigation into the shooting. The local district attorney’s office has also opened an inquiry into the case.