Three people died in separate incidents involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in the span of one week, prompting the Trump administration to temporarily suspend most ICE vehicle stops nationwide, according to ABC News.
The most recent death came Tuesday morning in St. Augustine, Florida. Around 6:42 a.m., ICE and Homeland Security Investigations agents encountered a group of people in a car at a parking lot. Four occupants fled on foot. One of them ran into traffic on State Road 16.
"The pedestrian was struck by the tractor trailer in the right lane and sustained fatal injuries on scene. The tractor trailer immediately stopped and attempted to render aid to the victim," the Florida Highway Patrol said in a statement.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed the incident in a statement: "On July 14, DHS law enforcement conducted an operation near St. Johns, Florida. Florida Highway Patrol and HSI are investigating an incident resulting in the death of a Mexican national. We will provide an update when available." The Florida Highway Patrol said the investigation is ongoing.
The Florida death occurred on the same day ICE began temporarily suspending vehicle stops, a decision driven by two fatal shootings earlier in the week. On July 7, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, 52, a Mexican national, was fatally shot by an ICE officer during a traffic stop in Houston, Texas. Local elected leaders said Salgado was not the target of the operation.
Then on Monday, ICE agents in Biddeford, Maine, shot and killed 26-year-old Johan Sebastian Guerrero after attempting to stop the car he was driving. Guerrero, a Colombian national, was also not the intended target. Sen. Angus King, an independent from Maine, told ABC News that ICE agents had been given a final removal order for a different man. Local media identified Guerrero as a father who had worked as a food delivery driver to support his wife and daughter. Both shooting incidents remain under investigation.
Multiple sources told ABC News that the suspension of vehicle stops is temporary and that ICE officers will receive new training before resuming them. The deaths have drawn scrutiny from lawmakers, including pressure on Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, according to reporting from the New York Times.
The three deaths in a single week represent an unusual cluster of fatal outcomes from ICE enforcement operations and have raised questions about tactics and training within the agency.
