Introduction to the Incident
William Arvelo drove more than six hours from Corpus Christi with his wife and 1-year-old-son to meet with immigration officials in Dallas on their pending asylum case. Less than one week earlier, a gunman opened fire on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Dallas, killing one detainee and critically wounding two before taking his own life. On Monday morning, Arvelo, who is originally from Venezuela, arrived with his wife, Julia Pinto, to find the office still closed despite earlier plans to reopen. The couple was among the dozens of immigrants who showed up Monday because they did not receive notification their appointments were postponed. A single federal police officer posted in the parking lot told migrants the office was closed, but many said they still feared consequences, including deportation, if they did not check in.
Anxiety and Fear Among Immigrants
“We’re nervous,” Arvelo, 30, said in Spanish. “We don’t know what will happen next. We’re just stuck waiting.”
Julia Pinto waits outside of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement with her son, Aziel Arvelo, on September 29, 2025 in Dallas. They are one of many who had an immigration appointment last week, following the office’s closure.
Check-ins are a regular part of ICE operations and used to track migrants, in Texas and around the country. Many said the meetings were already fraught even before Wednesday’s shooting. In some cases, migrants in North Texas have been detained when they showed up for a scheduled check-in or court hearing.
Clasping folders with immigration documents, many said they are anxious, confused and unable to get answers from ICE. Some said they have missed multiple days of work as they wait for an appointment. Others said they worry they will be separated from their U.S.-born children.
The Shooting Incident
Federal authorities say a 29-year-old gunman, Joshua Jahn of Fairview, was targeting immigration officials from a rooftop near the ICE office and had written “ANTI-ICE” on a bullet. No law enforcement officers were injured in the shooting. All three people shot were migrants: Norlan Guzmán Fuentes, from El Salvador, was killed. Jose Andres Bordones-Molina, from Venezuela, was wounded. On Tuesday, the family of Miguel Ángel García-Hernández, from Mexico, said he died.
A man walks up to a police car outside of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office, asking about his appointment on September 29, 2025 in Dallas.
ICE officers and facilities have faced a flurry of threats since President Donald Trump ordered a widespread crackdown on illegal immigration. On July 4, a planned protest at an ICE detention center in Alvarado escalated with one officer shot. At least 15 people have been arrested so far in connection with what federal authorities described as a “planned ambush.” The officer who was shot in the neck survived.
Reactions and Fears
Attorney General Pam Bondi said last week she would deploy Justice Department personnel to protect immigration officers and detention centers.
Yet some immigrants said they, too, feel unsafe. Edgar Peralta, a Dallas chiropractor originally from Mexico, accompanied his Cuban-born partner Monday for her immigration check-in. Scanning nearby rooftops, Peralta said he felt exposed and surprised by the lack of information from officials.
“I’m upset, angry, disappointed and scared for many reasons,” said Peralta, 51, a U.S. citizen. “We feel like sitting ducks here.”
In recent months, Peralta said he is inclined to carry proof of citizenship with him at all times “because of the color of my skin.”
Nearby, Edixon Delgado, 33, clutched a cup of gas station coffee as he paced a parking lot adjacent to the ICE office. Delgado, who is from Venezuela, repeatedly called the phone number listed on his immigration paperwork, but no one answered. The Dallas-area construction worker said he is worried about being separated from his young children if he fails to attend a check-in.
“They haven’t told me anything,” Delgado said.
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