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Federal prosecutors in Minneapolis were prepared to charge an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent for shooting and wounding a Venezuelan man during the Trump administration’s wintertime immigration operation, but the U.S. attorney’s office ultimately chose not to present the case to a grand jury. 

The decision last week came just before Agent Christian Castro 

Castro, 52, shot Julio Sosa-Celis of Venezuela in his leg on January 14 after firing through the closed door of his north Minneapolis home. Castro had pursued Sosa-Celis into the house after a car chase involving Sosa-Celis’ roommate Alfredo Aljorna. 

Two days later, the Minnesota U.S. attorney’s office charged Sosa-Celis and Aljorna with assault after Castro claimed the two attacked him with a broomstick and snow shovel. The feds dropped the case when 

 proved Sosa-Celis and Aljorna hadn’t attacked anyone.

More than seven months after the shooting, the same office was preparing to turn the tables and ask a grand jury to indict Castro on charges of 

The federal civil rights statute carries the potential of a long prison sentence. It’s the same crime to which former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin 

 after a Hennepin County jury convicted him separately of murdering George Floyd. 

Federal prosecutors ultimately decided not to indict Castro, according to two people with knowledge of the case who are not authorized to speak publicly. 

Sosa-Celis’ attorney Robin Wolpert said in a phone interview with MPR News on Sunday that her client saw a glimmer of hope when the same office that prosecuted him based on Castro’s false statements finally appeared to be making things right. 

“Mr. Sosa-Celis put his trust in federal prosecutors who promised him that they would finally pursue justice by indicting Mr. Castro,” Wolpert said. “And it really is devastating, because he did put his trust in the justice system. He did put his trust in prosecutors, and it’s been broken again.” 

MPR News has sought comment from both the Minnesota U.S. attorney’s office and Justice Department officials in Washington. Court records do not list an attorney for Castro. 

Even though federal authorities declined to indict Castro, he’s still facing state-level assault charges that Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty 

Moriarty’s team filed routine paperwork to extradite Castro from his home state of Texas, but after Republican Governor Greg Abbott did not sign an extradition warrant, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and Gov. Tim Walz, both Democrats, sued Abbott. 

 that because Abbott neither agreed nor refused to sign the warrant, the court can’t force him to act.

 of a south Texas jail on Thursday after Texas’ 90-day limit on holding extradition detainees expired. 

Ellison told MPR News on Friday that he is still figuring out his next move in the federal lawsuit over Castro’s extradition. 

“We will never drop this,” Ellison said. “We will be pursuing justice. And Mr. Castro will face justice in Minnesota. I can’t guarantee exactly when, but I can guarantee that that’s going to happen.” 

Ellison and Moriarty say they’re concerned Castro could flee the United States. In a court filing last week, an investigator in Ellison’s office wrote that Castro and his romantic partner, who lives in Mexico, discussed in recorded jail phone calls marrying and buying a home there. 

Because Castro was released from jail without conditions, it’s unclear where he is or if authorities are tracking his whereabouts. 

In a statement to MPR News on Saturday, the Department of Homeland Security said Castro is suspended from ICE without pay. The department said the Minnesota U.S. attorney’s office is “actively investigating" Castro and he may be charged with lying under oath. 

The agency did not say whether Castro could face federal civil rights charges for the shooting. 

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Immigration enforcement in Minnesota

Matt Sepic

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Federal prosecutors in Minneapolis considered but ultimately declined to charge ICE Agent Christian Castro with civil rights violations for shooting and wounding Julio Sosa-Celis in January. 

Feds decline to charge ICE agent in Minneapolis shooting

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