A federal criminal complaint alleges that a DoorDash driver, Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, struck an immigration officer with his vehicle’s side mirror as he fled a traffic stop in Austin, Texas — an encounter that ended in gunfire.
The incident occurred on September 20, according to the U.S. Department of Justice filing. Perez, described as 28 years old, parked with hazard lights activated and was discovered by immigration officers through a database check to have an active deportation order.
The complaint states that during the interaction, Perez requested permission from officers to wait for his wife to retrieve his vehicle but was denied. He allegedly “abruptly” closed the window and accelerated, causing one officer to be struck on the torso by the side mirror of Perez’s car.
Perez then reportedly fled in a high-speed chase lasting approximately eight minutes before he was shot by an officer who did not wear a body camera. A second officer, equipped with a body camera, arrived at the scene only after the shooting occurred.
Perez’s attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, stated that he had been seeking asylum and held a valid work permit but missed his immigration court hearing because a notice was sent to his previous address. She noted that Perez’s work permit expired in 2025 and did not confer legal status under U.S. law.
The Department of Homeland Security previously described Perez as an “illegal alien from Venezuela” who entered the country illegally and had a final order of removal.
Perez was charged with one count of assaulting, resisting, and impeding a federal officer. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. Lincoln-Goldfinch reported that Perez remains in critical medical condition following the shooting and has been requesting surgery to remove the bullet.
The complaint includes still frames from police footage but does not release body camera evidence.
