Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican citizen who lived in the U.S. for more than three decades, was fatally shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent July 7 in Houston’s East End. Now, Americans are stepping up to help Salgado’s family following his death.
A GoFundMe was organized and launched by the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) on July 9. The GoFundMe was created “to carry [Araujo’s] family through the impossible days ahead, and to let them grieve without the added weight of how they will get by,” and it drew more than $200,000 in donations in its first 24 hours. That number has since more than doubled, reaching just over $470,000 as of late Sunday afternoon (LULAC set a goal of $500,000).
Per LULAC, the funds raised will directly be used to cover funeral and burial costs, legal expenses, everyday living costs and any further expenses for Araujo’s wife, his “lifelong companion and sole provider.”
Araujo was stopped by ICE officers in Houston last Tuesday in a traffic stop during a targeted enforcement mission. The Department of Homeland Security has said Araujo attempted to flee the scene during the incident and “weaponized” his vehicle by driving toward an officer, who then fired a shot that struck Araujo in the chest. The shooting drew further scrutiny and criticism late last week, when federal immigration officials said Araujo was “not the target” of the ICE operation. ICE officials stopped Arajuo because he resembled the individual ICE targeted for arrest. There is no body camera footage of the incident, and the men with Araujo at the time have all disputed DHS’ account of the incident.
“ICE confirmed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was not the target,” U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia said on social media last Thursday. “Yet he was killed by federal agents in an unmarked vehicle, with no body cam footage, no dash cam footage, and no answers for his family. ICE owes this family the truth.”
Araujo’s son, Ronaldo Salgado, held a press conference in Houston on July 8. He decried his father’s death, noting “my father did not deserve this.” Subsequent protests were held in Houston as citizens mourned Araujo’s death and demanded an investigation and accountability from federal officials.
