Federal officials have refused to publicly identify the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who shot a 26-year-old Colombian man in Biddeford on Monday.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of the Inspector General is investigating the death of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, who was living in Biddeford with his partner and young daughter. ICE has confirmed that an agent shot Guerrero while he was in his car.
Federal officials have not responded to repeated requests for information about the agent who fired the shots, including their training history and current status in the agency. In response to questions on Monday about the shooting, DHS spokesperson James Covington replied in a text message: “I will never share an officer’s name.”
DHS has also refused to identify agents involved in other shootings, including in Texas, where an ICE agent shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo less than a week before Guerrero’s death.
ABC News and The Atlantic reported on Tuesday that the agent in the Biddeford incident had been hired by ICE earlier this year. The outlets did not report his name.
By Wednesday morning, unverified reports claiming to have identified the shooter based on two people who said they know him personally were circulating online. The Portland Press Herald has not been able to verify the information, or locate substantiated videos of the shooting itself, only the moments before and after.
Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King were unable to share details about the shooter’s identity, their staffs said on Wednesday.
Rep. Chellie Pingree’s staff said in a statement Wednesday evening that she had a conversation with DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin that afternoon. Mullin told her the agency did not have plans to release the name of the ICE officers involved in the shooting at this time, according to the statement.
A spokesperson for Rep. Jared Golden did not respond to a request for comment.
The Office of the Maine Attorney General has also denied requests to elaborate on the scope of its own investigation into the shooting.
ICE has said it “was conducting targeted surveillance on the last known address of an illegal alien with a final order of removal.” When the driver attempted to flee, according to the agency, a federal officer discharged his weapon. King’s office said on Monday that the head of DHS has told him the man shot was not the intended target of the warrant.
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