U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have been instructed to immediately cease most vehicle stops nationwide. This directive comes in the wake of two fatal shootings in Texas and Maine that involved ICE agents during immigration enforcement operations.
The suspension applies to the majority of circumstances, with exceptions made for cases involving serious criminal targets, according to U.S. media reports citing unnamed law enforcement sources. This represents a significant policy change for the agency, which has faced increased scrutiny regarding allegations of excessive force and deaths during its operations over the past year.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been contacted for comment regarding the new policy. In the most recent incident, an ICE agent fatally shot a 26-year-old Colombian national in Biddeford, Maine, during an immigration enforcement operation. DHS stated that the officer opened fire out of concern for public safety when the individual attempted to flee the scene and after agents tried to stop his vehicle. Immigration advocates have asserted that the individual, who has not been officially named, was authorized to work in the U.S. and possessed a social security number.
Less than a week prior to the Maine incident, another man, identified as Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican national who had resided in the U.S. for decades, was killed by an ICE officer in Houston, Texas. DHS reported that the stop was initiated after agents observed a white van with an individual matching the description of a target of an operation. The department stated the officer acted in self-defense, and that Araujo was not the intended subject of the operation. Passengers in the van and Araujo's family have contested the department's account, and the agency's legal watchdog has launched an investigation into the shooting.
Both shootings have prompted protests. These events follow earlier demonstrations nationwide earlier this year after the deaths of Renée Good and Alex Pretti, both 37-year-old U.S. citizens, who were killed by ICE agents in January during raids in Minneapolis. According to Reuters, at least seven individuals have died in immigration enforcement operations since January 2025.