ICE’s story of a Minneapolis shooting fell apart. New video shows what happened before an agent fired

By Lauren Mascarenhas, Caroll Alvarado, CNN

(CNN) — A newly released city camera video from Minneapolis is shedding light on the moments leading up to a shooting involving an ICE agent and two Venezuelan immigrants in January – and why the agency’s initial account of the incident eventually crumbled.

Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, who was shot by a federal agent, and his cousin Alfredo A. Aljorna were facing federal charges after the Department of Homeland Security said they had violently attacked the agent, prompting him to fire a defensive shot. But the Justice Department dropped the charges in February, and ICE said two of its agents who made false statements about the incident under oath were placed on administrative leave.

The nine minute video, which shows a struggle lasting about 12 seconds between the federal agent and the two men, appears to contradict the agent’s account that he was engaged in a struggle for about three minutes before the shooting. It also appears to contradict DHS’s repeated claims that the agent was violently struck with a snow shovel or broom stick. One of the men pictured in the video appears to be holding a shovel that he drops before the struggle begins, and the shovel can be seen on the snowy ground for the duration of the encounter.

The US Attorney’s Office is investigating, and the agents who made “untruthful statements” about the incident could potentially face termination or criminal prosecution, an ICE spokesperson told CNN in a statement Monday in response to questions about the video.

“The video is evidence in ongoing federal and state investigations, so I cannot comment,” Sosa-Celis’ attorney, Robin Wolpert, told CNN. Aljorna’s attorney, Frederick J. Goetz, also declined to comment on the video.

The incident took place during DHS’s monthslong Twin Cities deployment known as Operation Metro Surge — which targeted undocumented immigrants and resulted in the deaths of two US citizens at the hands of federal agents. More than 4,000 undocumented immigrants were arrested during the operation, DHS said.

Former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem described the men’s actions as “an attempted murder of federal law enforcement” at the time.

But the Department of Justice filed a motion to drop the charges against the men in February, citing “newly discovered evidence” contradicting the agents’ previous account. Federal prosecutors provided incorrect information to the court, the DOJ said.

“The video makes it crystal clear that, just like in other situations during Operation Metro Surge, the federal government’s account of what happened simply does not match the facts,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told CNN in a statement Monday.

Federal agencies have offered conflicting accounts on the incident.

In its initial account, on January 15, DHS said federal agents were targeting Sosa-Celis in a traffic stop when he fled first in his vehicle and then on foot resisting and violently assaulting the officer trying to apprehend him. The agency claimed two other men, including Aljorna, came out of a nearby apartment and attacked the agent. All three men struck the agent with a snow shovel or broom handle during the incident, the statement said, before the agent fired “a defensive shot to defend his life.”

But the next day, the DOJ offered a different account in a filing supporting criminal charges against Sosa-Celis and Aljorna. Aljorna was driving the vehicle agents were pursuing, prosecutors said. Aljorna fled from the car, and he and Sosa-Celis struck the agent with a shovel or broom, the affidavit said.

In February, Goetz told CNN the Trump administration’s claims that his client and Sosa-Celis attacked federal agents with a broomstick or shovel “never happened.”

Federal agents were following Aljorna while he was driving, Goetz said, and Aljorna lost control of the car due to ice on the roadway and hit a snowbank.

Aljorna ran from the car, and an ICE agent tackled him just 10 feet away from the home where Sosa-Celis was standing, according to his attorney. Aljorna was able to slip out of his jacket, freeing himself from the agent’s grasp, and ran to his cousin. They both got behind the door and closed it when the shot was fired, the attorney said.

After the shooting, Sosa-Celis described being involved in a struggle with federal agents as he was helping Aljorna escape arrest.

The accounts from the two men were reiterated by their family members and partners in interviews and livestream videos of their 911 calls, which differed from DHS’ initial statement.

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CNN’s Emma Tucker contributed to this report.