MINNEAPOLIS — Federal authorities opened a criminal probe into whether two immigration officers lied under oath about the shooting of a Venezuelan man in Minneapolis last month.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons said Friday his agency opened a joint probe with the Justice Department after video evidence revealed "sworn testimony provided by two separate officers appears to have made untruthful statements."
The announcement came as a federal judge ordered all charges dropped against Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, who was shot in the leg by an immigration officer, as well as another Venezuelan man, Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna.
The officers, who were not named, are on administrative leave pending the completion of an internal investigation, he said.
"Lying under oath is a serious federal offense," said Lyons, adding that the U.S. Attorney's Office is investigating.
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Lyons said at the conclusion of the investigation, the officers could face termination of employment as well as potential criminal prosecution.
The dismissal of the charges against Aljorna and Sosa-Celis follows a string of high-profile shootings by federal immigration agents in which eyewitness statements and video evidence contradicted claims made to justify using deadly force. Dozens of felony cases against protesters accused of assaulting or impeding federal officers also crumbled.
In a highly unusual motion to dismiss filed Thursday, U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota Daniel N. Rosen said "newly discovered evidence" was "materially inconsistent with the allegations" made against Aljorna and Sosa-Celis in a criminal complaint and at a hearing last month.
U.S. District Court Judge Paul A. Magnuson dismissed the case with prejudice, meaning the charges cannot be resubmitted.
A lawyer for Aljorna and Sosa-Celis said Friday they are "overjoyed" that all the charges have been dismissed. Had they been convicted, the two immigrants would have faced years in federal prison.
"The charges against them were based on lies by an ICE agent who recklessly shot into their home through a closed door," said attorney Brian D. Clark. "They are so happy justice is being served."
It is unclear whether the men could still be deported.
Noem attacked Walz
An FBI investigator said in an affidavit that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop in Minneapolis on a vehicle driven by Aljorna on Jan. 14.
He crashed the vehicle and fled on foot toward the apartment duplex where he lived. An immigration officer chased Aljorna who, the government claimed, violently resisted arrest.
The complaint claims Sosa-Celis and another man attacked the officer with a snow shovel and a broom handle as the officer and Aljorna struggled on the ground. The officer fired his handgun, striking Sosa-Celis in his right thigh. The men ran into an apartment and eventually were arrested.
After the shooting, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem attacked Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, accusing the Democrats of "encouraging impeding and assault against our law enforcement which is a federal crime, a felony."
"What we saw last night in Minneapolis was an attempted murder of federal law enforcement," Noem said in a Jan. 15 statement. "Our officer was ambushed and attacked by three individuals who beat him with snow shovels and the handles of brooms. Fearing for his life, the officer fired a defensive shot."
The Department of Homeland Security didn't respond to requests Friday asking whether Noem stands by those statements.
Clark, the lawyer for Aljorna and Sosa-Celis, urged the government Friday to release the name of the ICE agent and charge him "for his crime."
Court filings show state authorities have opened their own criminal investigation into the shooting, though the FBI has refused to share evidence, provide the name of the ICE officer or make him available for an interview.
Holes in the case
Rosen's motion seeking to drop the charges did not detail what new evidence had emerged or what falsehoods had been in the government's prior filings, but cracks began to appear in the government's case during a Jan. 21 court hearing to determine whether the accused men could be released pending trial.
In court, the ICE officer's account of the moments before the shooting differed significantly from testimony from the two defendants and three eyewitnesses. The ICE officer's claim he was assaulted with a broom and snow shovel was also not corroborated by available video evidence.
Aljorna and Sosa-Celis denied assaulting the agent with a broom or a snow shovel. Neither video evidence nor testimony from a neighbor and the men's romantic partners supported the agent's account that he had been attacked with a broom or shovel or that a third person was involved.
Neither Aljorna and Sosa-Celis had violent criminal records. Both had been working as DoorDash delivery drivers at night in an attempt to avoid encounters with federal agents, their attorneys said.
