MEXICO CITY – Mexico plans to seek criminal charges in connection with the deaths of 17 Mexican nationals who died while in ICE custody or during immigration enforcement actions under the Trump administration, officials said Thursday.
The announcement by Mexican Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco marked a new point of friction between Mexico and the United States, as President Claudia Sheinbaum’s government has grown increasingly critical of how Mexican citizens have been treated amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s expanded deportation efforts.
Velasco said the request, while not legally binding, will be sent to state prosecutors’ offices as well as the U.S. Department of Justice, urging authorities to evaluate potential criminal charges against those deemed responsible for the deaths.
Mexico will also pursue civil lawsuits against companies that run immigration detention centers, Velasco said, describing the legal push as part of a broader effort to stop human rights abuses inside those facilities.
Sheinbaum said Thursday that her government decided to “move beyond diplomatic channels” after Mexican citizen Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was killed by an ICE agent in Houston earlier this week. She described the killing as “not only sad and regrettable,” but said it also “appears to have been targeted.”
“We are going to do everything in our power, because we cannot stand silent” as Mexicans die when “their only crime is working honestly in the United States,” Sheinbaum said.
Salgado Araujo had lived in the United States for decades, according to officials. He was driving a crew of workers to a housing construction site when he was shot, and his family has called for a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, said agents were pursuing Salgado Araujo because he was living in the country without legal authorization. The department said he was shot after ignoring commands and attempting to ram an agent, who then fired in self-defense.
According to the Mexican government, 14 Mexicans have died while in ICE custody and 3 during ICE operations.
Until now, the Mexican government had supported the victims’ families, sent diplomatic notes to Washington demanding investigations, and raised the issue with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Sheinbaum earlier this year ordered consulates to regularly check in with ICE detainees, and her government even lodged a complaint with the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Mexico’s latest request adds to an already strained relationship with the Trump administration. Sheinbaum has cracked down more fiercely than her predecessors on organized crime in the wake of mounting threats by Trump to take military action against cartels. She has also sought to keep an amicable relationship with her U.S. counterpart as the countries renegotiate the decades-old free trade agreement. At the same time, she’s taken a strong stance on immigration enforcement and the rights of Mexican citizens in U.S. custody.
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