Maine Gov. Janet Mills has called for the fundamental reform or abolition of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) following a fatal shooting involving federal immigration officers in Biddeford, Maine. The governor’s statement came Wednesday, the same day President Donald Trump reversed a temporary pause on traffic stops conducted by ICE agents.
An investigation is ongoing into the Monday shooting that killed 26-year-old Johan Sebastián Guerrero, a Colombian migrant. Maine Sen. Angus King stated that Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin informed him Guerrero was not the intended target of the ICE operation. Home security video obtained by ABC News captured the sound of shouting moments before gunshots rang out, followed by the sound of vehicles. One individual in the video is heard yelling what sounds like “back, back!” before five gunshots are heard.
"Before more families are robbed of a loved one, this violence has to end," Mills wrote in a letter to the Maine Congressional Delegation. "ICE needs to be fundamentally reformed, and if not, then it is time to abolish it."
Guerrero’s death marks the third incident in eight days where migrants have died during traffic stops involving federal immigration officers. In January, American citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Good were killed in separate incidents involving federal immigration agents in Minneapolis.
Earlier this week, a Mexican national died in St. Augustine, Florida, after allegedly running from an ICE and Homeland Security traffic stop and being struck by a tractor-trailer. In Houston, another Mexican national, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, 52, was fatally shot by an ICE officer during a traffic stop, with local leaders stating he was not the target of the operation.
Guerrero's sister, Angie Carolina Duran, described him as devoted to his family and stated, "He only commuted from work back to his home, that's it."
Colombian President Gustavo Petro called the event in Maine "a murder of a Colombian, a Latin American, at the hands of the US government." He added, "I expect from the Colombian foreign service in the U.S. the fastest legal and human action so that the murderers pay for their homicide."
President Trump reinstated ICE traffic stops, stating they are an "important and effective Crime Fighting tool" and that ICE agents are doing a "GREAT job." Trump’s order came as protests occurred in Maine demanding an independent investigation into Guerrero's death. According to a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson, Guerrero entered the U.S. in September 2023 and was granted a work permit in May 2025, though the spokesperson noted that work authorization does not confer legal status.
Sen. King told reporters that Guerrero was fatally shot after agents attempted to stop his vehicle. King stated that Guerrero was not the intended target and that ICE agents had a final order for another individual. King also noted that none of the ICE agents involved were equipped with body-worn cameras.
Maine immigration advocacy groups have called for a prompt, independent, and transparent investigation. They also requested a full accounting of all agencies and officers involved and the preservation of all relevant footage and communications. The Colombian Embassy in Washington, D.C., is providing consular assistance to Guerrero's family and has requested information and clarification from DHS.