DHS says Castro fired a defensive shot after being ambushed and beaten with a shovel and broom
Federal immigration-enforcement agency, in a press release published on DHS's website
“Attempting to evade arrest, Sosa-Celis fled the scene in his vehicle, crashed into a parked car, and proceeded to flee on foot. The law enforcement officer pursued Sosa-Celis also on foot, caught up to him, and attempted to apprehend him when Sosa-Celis began to resist and violently assault the officer. While Sosa-Celis and law enforcement were in a struggle on the ground, two subjects came out of a nearby apartment and attacked the law enforcement officer with a snow shovel and broom handle. As the officer was being ambushed and attacked by the two individuals, Sosa-Celis got loose and began striking the officer with a shovel or broom stick. Fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired a defensive shot to defend his life.”
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
DHS's original press release on the shooting, read in full on 2026-09-22. It names three men — Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, Alfredo Alejandro Ajorna (a spelling later reports give as "Aljorna") and Gabriel Alejandro Hernandez-Ledezma — as having violently attacked the officer, and quotes Secretary Noem calling it an attempted murder of federal law enforcement. The release's second paragraph gives the incident date as "January 14, 2025", an apparent typographical error; the release date and all other dates in the document, and every other source, place the shooting on January 14, 2026. As of the access date, this release remains published on DHS's website without a correction or retraction, a fact separately noted by the Hennepin County Attorney's Office (see the Hennepin/Minnesota Attorney General source below).
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
The shooting occurred the previous evening, January 14, 2026, in north Minneapolis during a targeted immigration enforcement operation.
After the quotation
DHS's release did not name the officer. Sosa-Celis and Aljorna were federally charged with assaulting the officer on the basis of this account. This press release remained published, uncorrected, on DHS's website as of this record's access date.
How this statement is classified
Responding to: Officer Christian Castro was ambushed and beaten with a snow shovel and broom handle by Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis and two other men, and fired a single defensive shot because he feared for his life.
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case’s fixed reference point is whether Officer Christian Castro’s decision to fire his weapon during the January 14, 2026 encounter with Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis was justified. DHS's account directly argues Castro's shot was a justified defensive response to a life-threatening ambush, expressly excusing the use of force.
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- People and groups discussed
- Christian Castro
Was ICE Officer Christian Castro Justified in Shooting Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis?
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
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Read the full case“Nobody is above the law, including ICE agents. The State of Minnesota must hold people accountable for violating the law and for harming Minnesotans. I support the filing of these charges, and I am working closely with Hennepin County Attorney Moriarty to ensure we reach a just outcome here.”Read statement
“A violent crime did occur that night, but it was Mr. Castro who committed it. He shot through the door of a home with many people, including children, inside, while fortunately missing several others. Mr. Castro is an ICE agent, but his federal badge does not make him immune from state charges for his criminal conduct in Minnesota.”Read statement
Gabriel Alejandro Hernandez-Ledezma
“Gabriel's life has been turned upside down by ICE's actions in Minnesota. The district court order finding his detention unlawful and ordering his release, along with the decision to dismiss charges against his neighbors, vindicates the unjustness of his arrest, detention, and the deliberate smearing of his name and broadcasting of his photo along with unfounded allegations, but it doesn't give him back the weeks he spent in detention. We look forward to further investigation into this matter and hope that those responsible face consequences.”Read statement