Mexico will request criminal charges against those responsible for the deaths of 17 Mexican nationals who died either in ICE custody or during immigration enforcement operations, escalating a confrontation with the Trump administration over what officials call systematic human rights violations. Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco announced Thursday that the request will be submitted to state prosecutors and the U.S. Department of Justice.
The move marks a dramatic shift from diplomatic channels to legal action. It comes two days after an ICE agent shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston, a Mexican citizen who'd lived in the United States for decades. He was transporting a work crew to a construction site when he was killed.
A Targeted Killing, Mexico Says
President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday that Mexico decided to pursue criminal charges after determining that Salgado Araujo's death "is not only sad and regrettable, but also appears to have been targeted." She didn't mince words about what's at stake. "We are going to do everything in our power, because we cannot stand silent" in the face of deaths of Mexicans "whose only crime is working honestly in the United States."
Salgado Araujo's family has demanded a thorough investigation. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, claims agents pursued him because he was living in the country without legal authorization. DHS said Salgado Araujo was shot after disregarding orders and attempting to ram an agent, who fired his weapon in self-defense. That account hasn't satisfied Mexican officials or the victim's family.
Fourteen Died in Detention Centers
The Mexican government said 14 Mexicans have died while in ICE custody and three during ICE operations. Until now, Mexico had supported victims' families through diplomatic channels, sent formal notes to Washington demanding investigations, and raised the issue with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Sheinbaum earlier this year ordered consulates to regularly check in with ICE detainees. Her government also lodged a complaint with the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Velasco said the criminal charges request will be accompanied by civil lawsuits against the companies that operate detention centers. The goal, he said, is "to put an end to human rights violations in those facilities." It's a recognition that diplomatic pressure alone hasn't stopped the deaths.
Strained Relations During Trade Talks
Mexico's latest action adds to an already strained relationship with the Trump administration. Sheinbaum has cracked down more fiercely than her predecessors on organized crime in the wake of mounting threats by Trump to take military action against cartels. She's also sought to keep an amicable relationship with her U.S. counterpart as the countries renegotiate the decades-old free trade agreement.
But she's drawn a line on immigration enforcement and the rights of Mexican citizens in U.S. custody. The decision to pursue criminal charges represents a calculation that Mexico can't remain silent while its citizens die in detention or during enforcement operations, even as critical trade negotiations continue.
Why This Matters:
Seventeen deaths of Mexican nationals in ICE custody or during enforcement operations reveal systematic failures in immigration detention oversight and accountability. Mexico's shift from diplomatic notes to criminal charges and civil lawsuits against detention center operators signals that existing mechanisms for protecting detained migrants' rights and investigating deaths haven't worked. For the families of those who died, the legal action represents the first real possibility of accountability for deaths that occurred while their loved ones were in U.S. government custody or targeted by federal agents. The outcome will test whether private detention companies and federal agents can be held criminally liable when migrants die in their custody, potentially setting precedents that affect how immigration enforcement operates across the country. As trade negotiations proceed, the cases will force both governments to confront whether economic partnership can coexist with fundamental disagreements over how migrants are treated and whether their deaths warrant criminal prosecution.