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An immigration attorney representing two illegal immigrants involved in a recent deadly ICE raid in Houston faces charges of domestic abuse and kidnapping, documents say.
Hugo Balderas-Ibarra, a private attorney in Texas, represented two of the three passengers in the van when Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was shot and killed by a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent last week.
In a press conference after the incident, Balderas-Ibarra tore into the agency, demanding the immediate release of his clients and accusing ICE agents of lying about the shooting and “racial profiling.” He said his clients “will always be physically and emotionally scarred by this murder,” adding, “None of these families will ever be alive again.”
However, a Harris County District Court charging document obtained by Fox News reveals that Balderas-Ibarra is currently out on a $20,000 bond on a felony domestic assault charge by obstructing the breath charge stemming from a 2024 incident.
ICE SAYS AN OFFICER SHOT AND KILLED AN ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT WHO WAS TRYING TO TAKE HIM IN A VEHICLE IN HOUSTON.
Hugo Balderas-Ibarra, a private attorney in Texas, represented two of the three passengers in the van when Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was shot and killed by a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent last week. (RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP via Getty Images)
The document says the alleged assault took place in 2024 when the victim and Balderas were dating. According to the deceased, they had an argument on the day he was supposed to board because of something he saw on his phone. This made him pack all his belongings, which Balderas-Ibarra found and took. The woman took an Uber to the airport.
When Balderas-Ibarra agreed to bring his luggage to the airport, where he was, the document says he “threw his luggage down,” and when he went to pick it up, “he grabbed her by the neck with his left hand.” He told investigators that he held her like that for a few seconds, and when he saw people approaching them, he “pressed her hard and twisted her throat.”
He said he could not breathe when he was strangled and felt dizzy and confused. After that, he said he felt nauseous, had a headache and fainted. The document says that photos taken by the authorities after the incident show redness and swelling on the woman’s neck.
After this incident, Balderas-Ibarra was charged with brutal assault on the family – to prevent breathing.
EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES WERE INSTRUCTED TO COMPLETE MULTIPLE POSITIONS IN THE MAIN POLICY INDUSTRY
Lorenzo Salgado Jr., left, and Ronaldo Salgado, right, sons of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, are shown during a news conference about their father’s firing at ICE in Houston on Wednesday, July 8, 2026. (Melissa Phillip/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
In addition, Harris County’s bond proposal shows that at the time of the strangulation incident, Balderas-Ibarra was already out on bail for a separate charge of domestic violence, kidnapping and false imprisonment in Seminole County, Florida.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Balderas-Ibarra’s office for comment.
According to the State Bar of Texas website, Balderas-Ibarra is eligible to practice law in the state with a “probationary license.”
He spoke at a press conference about the ICE shooting last Friday alongside Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Texas, and Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare, also a Democrat.
Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national who authorities say was in the country illegally, was shot and killed in Houston after ICE said he tried to pull over an ICE officer while he was parked. Araujo was beaten and rushed to the hospital, where he later died.
In a press conference, Balderas-Ibarra said ICE’s accounts of the shooting were “disparate” and that his clients’ versions of events “are very different from what ICE agents say or what the agency says.”
MAINE’S CHARGE SHOOTING JUDGMENT IS NOT INTENDED FOR BARRIER PROBATION, SEN. THE LADY’S OFFICE IS BEHIND THE DHS ACCOUNT
Rep. Al Green (right), D-Texas, speaks with Rep. Slyvia Garcia (center), D-Texas, and Rep. Hugo Balderas-Ibarra (left) during a news conference to discuss the trial of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, in Houston, Texas, on July 10, 2026. (RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP via Getty Images)
“All three of my clients reiterated that there was never an agent standing in front of the car, or an agent that was ever placed in the line of danger. That’s just a lie. And I believe my clients are telling the truth,” said Balderas-Ibarra.
He demanded ICE release his clients to ensure they were not deported, which he said would maintain “integrity” in the shooting investigation.
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“I’m asking for radical changes in the way ICE conducts their immigration enforcement,” he said, adding, “This is not immigration enforcement. This is racial profiling.”
Fox News Digital also reached out to the offices of Green, Garcia and Teare for comment.
