ICE agent sought in Minnesota immigrant shooting released from Texas jail
Abbott, Minnesota spar over release of ICE agent
Minnesota is suing Texas Gov. Greg Abbott after he declined to agree to extradite an ICE officer accused of shooting a man and lying about it back to Minnesota to face criminal charges. FOX 4's Amelia Jones has more.
BROWNSVILLE, Texas - An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer being held in a Texas jail has been released despite an extradition request from Minnesota.
What we know:
Cameron County Sheriff Manuel Treviño confirmed Christian Castro was released at 6:59 a.m. Thursday.
Minnesota sues Texas over extradition of ICE agent
Minnesota is suing Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to force the extradition of an ICE officer charged in a January shooting before a key detention deadline expires Thursday.
January immigrant shooting
The backstory:
Castro was arrested by the Texas Rangers in May and has been held in a Cameron County jail on charges out of Hennepin County, Minnesota, related to a January shooting of an immigrant.
Castro is accused of not only shooting the immigrant, but also lying about what happened.
According to Texas law, a person awaiting extradition cannot be held in jail longer than 90 days. Minnesota filed a lawsuit to prevent Castro’s release. A judge denied the request Wednesday, saying it was premature since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott had not made a decision about the extradition request.
Texas judge denies Minnesota’s request to stop release of ICE agent charged in immigrant shooting
A federal judge has denied Minnesota’s request to prevent the release of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer being held in a Texas jail in connection with a shooting earlier this year.
Abbott says state still investigating
What they're saying:
In a statement from a spokesperson Wednesday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott praised the judge’s decision, saying it was an attempt by another state to usurp his authority.
Regarding the extradition decision, Abbott's spokesperson said Thursday an investigation is underway.
"Laws require that Mr. Castro be released while the State completes its investigation into his fugitive status," said Abbott's Press Secretary Andrew Mahaleris. "But he must understand that the eyes of law enforcement will remain fixed on him. If at any time the Governor determines that he is a fugitive, a Governor’s warrant will be executed immediately, and law enforcement at the local, state, and federal levels will track him down and arrest him."
The Source: Information in this story came from the Cameron County sheriff, a spokesperson for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and previous FOX Local reporting.