ICE detains Latino man after he called HPD to report a shooting

On Sunday, a 54-year-old man named Juan Francisco Monroy Turuy called the Houston Police Department to report a shooting in a Home Depot parking lot. He even gave HPD a positive ID on the suspect saying “I’m sure that’s him. I saw the gun and was afraid.” Because of Monroy’s help, HPD arrested David Mendez, 24, and charged him with unlawful possession of a firearm.

Shortly after that, ICE detained Monroy, and sent him to a Montgomery County detention facility. Monroy is a Guatemalan citizen. ICE says he was “convicted of a criminal offense” but has provided zero details and frankly I don’t believe a word these ICE goons say. HPD has also not explained how ICE knew he was at the scene.

Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare didn’t hold back saying “When you have reportees and witnesses getting detained and arrested while cooperating with law enforcement, that’s inherently going to negatively impact witnesses and victim cooperation. It’s making people less safe.” He also said “When ICE grabs people, they effectively go into a black hole.”

Teare would know, as his office is dealing with the aftermath of the July 7 fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Houstonian killed by an ICE agent in the East End. Three witnesses to that shooting, including Salgado Araujo’s brother, are also being held by ICE and facing deportation. Teare has filed U visa paperwork on their behalf (U visas protect crime witnesses from deportation if they cooperate with law enforcement) and has demanded ICE release them so his office can interview them. One of the three detainees, Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego, is currently out, while the other two are still in ICE custody. A federal judge already had to step in to block deportation of at least one of them.

Contrary to Faux news lies, crime isn’t down in cities like Houston because of tough policing and immigration enforcement. Crime REPORTS are down because people are terrified to call the police.

This is well-documented behavior in cities that make immigration enforcement a priority. Immigrants stop calling the cops, then their neighbors stop calling the cops, then crime keeps happening and nobody reports it. It becomes a vicious cycle but that’s why the numbers are reflected the way they are. Law enforcement leaders have been saying this for over a decade.

Nobody trusts cops right now, and the only time cops are in the news is for violating their own jobs or abusing the power or access they have.

It’s no secret that I’m openly anti-ICE. ICE isn’t a “trained” (and I use that word VERY lightly) police force, nor are they a public safety agency. They’re just goons with a federal budget who show up to create chaos and tragedy. They picked up a man after he helped his community by reporting and IDing a shooter, how low can you be?

In just six weeks in Houston alone, we can see the chaos they are causing. On July 7, an ICE agent shoots and kills Lorenzo Salgado Araujo and the only three witnesses (his brother among them) get grabbed by ICE. August 10, a man calls HPD to report a Home Depot shooting, helps identify the suspect, and gets grabbed by ICE. Both times, the local DA loses access to the witnesses he needs. Both times, ICE calims the detained man had some prior “criminal” issue and provides no documentation. So that’s why I know this sadly won’t be the last time I write one of these articles. Unless this gang is disbanded, more and more of our neighbors will be scooped up and disappeared without any repercussions.

The question at the middle of this is HPD’s cooperation with ICE, because SOMEONE told ICE where Monroy was but HPD is silent on it. Is HPD is running names through federal immigration databases, or handing witness information over to ICE, or letting ICE agents wait outside police stations? I’m going to believe that unless proven otherwise.

1. Read the reporting from Houston Public Media, Fox 26 Houston, and CBS News on both cases.

2. If you live in Houston, call your city council member and ask them to demand an answer from HPD about how ICE knew where Monroy was. These are resources funded by YOUR tax dollars and you have the right to ask how they are being used.

3. If you are undocumented or know someone who is, know your rights before you call 911. Organizations like RAICES and FIEL Houston have “know your rights” resources in Spanish and English, so have that ready before you leave your home in the morning.

4. Early voting in Texas runs October 19 through October 30 and includes a Saturday and Sunday in most counties.

5. Register to vote. Head to votetexas.gov, fill out the application, print it, sign it, and mail it to your county elections office, or drop it off in person. No printer? The same site lets you request a postage-paid paper application by mail. Get it postmarked by October 5, the deadline for the November 3 election.

6. On November 3, vote Gina Hinojosa for Governor against Greg Abbott. Vote James Talarico for U.S. Senate against Ken Paxton. Vote Vikki Goodwin for Lieutenant Governor against Dan Patrick. Vote Ben Flores for Land Commissioner. Vote Democrat down-ballot.

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