ST. PAUL, Minnesota — Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison sued Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday, seeking to force the extradition of an ICE agent charged with shooting a man in Minneapolis and then allegedly filing a false account of the encounter.
Christian Castro, 52, faces four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime stemming from the Jan. 14 shooting of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis during Operation Metro Surge. Prosecutors say Castro fired through the front door of a Minneapolis home, striking Sosa-Celis in the leg. The bullet ultimately lodged in a child’s bedroom wall.
Federal officials initially said Sosa-Celis and another man attacked an officer with a broom handle and snow shovel. Those federal charges were later dismissed, and ICE Director Todd Lyons acknowledged that agents had lied about circumstances surrounding the incident.
Castro was arrested in Texas on May 29 and remains jailed in Cameron County on a $200,000 bond. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz requested extradition in June, but Abbott has not signed the warrant.
Ellison is now asking a federal judge to order Abbott to comply and prevent Castro’s release. He warned that Texas law could require Castro’s release after 90 days in custody and said jail calls indicate Castro has discussed moving to Mexico.
Abbott’s office said it would not comment on pending extradition matters.
The lawsuit cites a 1987 Supreme Court ruling holding that governors generally have no discretion to refuse valid interstate extradition requests. Minnesota prosecutors say three unrelated defendants have been extradited from Texas without difficulty since Castro’s arrest.
Castro has not been convicted, and the charges remain allegations.
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