FBI affidavit alleges drugs found in van involved in Houston ICE shooting

A week after a 52-year-old man was fatally shot by an ICE agent in Houston, the FBI filed a warrant application saying the agency has cause to believe there were illegal drugs in the vehicle he was driving.

The application cites probable cause for  distribution, manufacturing, or possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance and simple possession of a controlled substance. 


Immigration and Customs Enforcement's initial statement on Lorenzo Salgado Araujo's fatal shooting - that the agent shot Salgado Araujo in self-defense - has faced scrutiny. The officers involved were not wearing body-worn cameras.

In the warrant affidavit authored by FBI Special Agent David McNielly on Tuesday and submitted to a federal magistrate judge, the agent described arriving on scene after the shooting and allegedly observing small plastic bags  with a white crystal-like substance  in the white cargo van. McNielly said he made the observations from outside of the van.

 The packaging and appearance of the controlled substance in the target vehicle is consistent with methamphetamine,  the warrant states. However, it does not explicitly say who the bags are believed to belong to. Included within the warrant are two images of the bags that appear to be on the vehicle's dashboard. CNN has reached out to the FBI about whether the contents of the bags have been confirmed or sent for screening.

While not unheard of, it is unusual for an FBI search warrant to be publicly available during an active and high-profile investigation of this nature.

The federal court docket appears to show the warrant was initially sealed when it was filed Tuesday, shielding its contents from public view, but it was later unsealed. The filing came two days before a public viewing for Salgado Araujo, and three days before his funeral.

Law enforcement had not searched the vehicle prior to filing the warrant, McNielly wrote. Houston Mayor John Whitmire told CNN that FBI agents were performing a search of the vehicle Wednesday morning.


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