Federal immigration agents involved in an operation that left a Houston construction worker seriously injured were searching for a man whose family says died nearly nine years ago, according to a new report from The New York Times.
The Times reported Wednesday that Jamie Jimenez, of Dallas, identified the man pictured in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement wanted bulletin as her father, Jose Hector Jimenez Mendoza. She said he died in October 2017 after falling from a cliff near the southern border while fleeing immigration agents.
A Mexican death certificate provided by Jimenez to the Times states her father was 43 when he died in Laredo, Texas.
The report raises new questions about the identity of the man ICE said it was pursuing during Saturday’s operation in northwest Harris County, when an agent allegedly struck 48-year-old Miguel Parra Hernandez with an SUV as he ran away.
ICE identified its target as Jose Mendoza-Cervantes, an undocumented Mexican immigrant with a deportation order and multiple prior arrests. Jimenez told the Times her father used aliases, including the name released by ICE, and that the photograph in the agency’s bulletin appeared to show him.
The Times said it reviewed photographs provided by Jimenez that appeared to match the image in the Department of Homeland Security bulletin. The newspaper also reviewed court records showing her father faced the same types of criminal charges ICE attributed to its target.
ICE and the Department of Homeland Security did not respond to the Times’ questions about Jimenez’s father or requests for additional information about the man the agency was seeking.
In a statement Saturday, ICE said agents conducting surveillance had seen Mendoza-Cervantes enter a vehicle driven by Parra Hernandez.
When agents attempted to stop the vehicle, Parra Hernandez and a second man fled on foot, according to the agency. ICE said Parra Hernandez ran in front of one of its vehicles and was struck.
The agency described its target as a public safety threat, citing four prior arrests for driving under the influence and an arrest for unlawful possession of a firearm. ICE also said the man had been deported twice and illegally reentered the United States five times.
However, Jimenez told the Times her father died in 2017, and the newspaper reported that records showed he had faced similar charges and used aliases.
During a Wednesday news conference, Cesar Espinosa, executive director of immigrant rights organization FIEL Houston, displayed a photograph of the passenger who fled during the operation. Espinosa said the passenger did not resemble the man pictured in ICE’s wanted bulletin.
Parra Hernandez’s brother and supporters also said Parra Hernandez had never crossed paths with Mendoza-Cervantes. His family said he had lived in Houston for 34 years and had not previously been stopped by immigration authorities.
A search of court records using Parra Hernandez’s name and age found several traffic tickets but no criminal charges, according to the Times.
The ICE officer who allegedly struck Parra Hernandez has been placed on administrative leave while an internal investigation continues, according to a senior Department of Homeland Security official cited by NBC News.
Multiple officers at the scene were wearing body cameras, and ICE is reviewing the footage internally, NBC News reported. It remains unclear whether the footage will be released publicly or shared with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.
Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare said his office is investigating the incident with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office and considering whether the officer could face an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charge.
“From my perspective and from the perspective of a lot of different investigators who have looked at this, that individual was intentionally struck and run over,” Teare previously told KPRC 2.
ICE has denied allegations that its officer intentionally struck Parra Hernandez.
The investigation also includes allegations that federal agents removed critical evidence after the incident. The Harris County District Attorney’s Office has raised concerns about ICE’s handling of evidence, as detailed in KPRC 2’s previous reporting.
Surveillance footage appeared to show an ICE SUV veering toward Parra Hernandez and striking him from behind as he ran away, according to the Times.
The impact shattered his leg and injured his hip and ankle. His attorney, Kim Bruno, said Parra Hernandez underwent surgery Saturday and needs additional surgery.
He remains in ICE custody at the hospital, according to his attorney.
FIEL Houston has been assisting Parra Hernandez’s family and has raised concerns about the circumstances of the operation and the treatment of the injured man.
The second man who was in the vehicle escaped on foot and was not captured, according to the Times.
The case is unfolding amid heightened scrutiny of federal immigration enforcement in the Houston area. Harris County prosecutors are also investigating the July killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, 52, during an encounter involving federal immigration enforcement in east Houston.
Teare has previously criticized the Department of Homeland Security for not responding to his office’s requests for information in that investigation.
FIEL released the following statement after the news broke:
“This new revelation deconstructs all of the story that ICE has been saying. How can they have seen a dead man getting into a car? How could they have seen a dead man run? Them picking a random person and using their memory as an excuse to set of this chain of events is reckless and hurts families. We are hoping for ICE to begin being truthful, and we hope to continue to fight for justice for Miguel Parra.”
