ICE agent sought in Minnesota immigrant shooting released from Texas jail

Published August 27, 2026 10:13 AM CDT

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer being held in a Texas jail has been released despite an extradition request from Minnesota.

What we know:

Cameron County Sheriff Manuel Treviño confirmed Christian Castro was released at 6:59 a.m. Thursday.

Related

Minnesota sues Texas over extradition of ICE agent charged in shooting

Minnesota is suing Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to force the extradition of an ICE officer charged in a January shooting before a key detention deadline expires Thursday.

January immigrant shooting

The backstory:

Castro was arrested by the Texas Rangers in May and has been held in a Cameron County jail on charges out of Hennepin County, Minnesota, related to a January shooting of an immigrant.

Castro is accused of not only shooting the immigrant, but also lying about what happened.

According to Texas law, a person awaiting extradition cannot be held in jail longer than 90 days. Minnesota filed a lawsuit to prevent Castro’s release. A judge denied the request Wednesday, saying it was premature since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott had not made a decision about the extradition request.

Related

Texas judge denies Minnesota’s request to stop release of ICE agent charged in immigrant shooting

A federal judge has denied Minnesota’s request to prevent the release of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer being held in a Texas jail in connection with a shooting earlier this year.

Abbott says judge made right decision

What they're saying:

In a statement from a spokesperson, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott praised the judge’s decision, saying it was an attempt by another state to usurp his authority.

It’s not clear when Abbott will make a decision about Castro’s extradition.

The Source: Information in this story came from the Cameron County sheriff, a spokesperson for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and previous FOX Local reporting.

ImmigrationNewsCrime and Public SafetyGreg AbbottMinnesotaTexas