A substance found in the work van of a Mexican immigrant killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent has tested negative for illicit drugs, the top prosecutor in Houston said Friday — contradicting claims by federal officials that the vehicle likely contained meth.
The revelation is a major development in the case of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a construction worker who was fatally shot by an ICE officer in Houston on July 7 after living in the U.S. for 35 years.
ICE has maintained that Salgado Araujo “weaponized” his vehicle during an attempted traffic stop, prompting an agent to shoot him in self-defense. The other men in the van, who remain in ICE custody, have disputed that allegation.
The FBI’s Claim
Roughly a week after the killing, the FBI submitted an affidavit in federal court saying it suspected that the van Salgado Araujo was driving contained methamphetamine. The affidavit included photos taken from outside the vehicle showing small bags with a white crystal-like substance that an agent said was consistent with meth.
But on Friday, the office of Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare said the test results had come back negative.
“We can confirm the substance found in Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s van tested negative for narcotics / illicit drugs,” the office said in a statement. “We have notified Salgado Araujo’s family because we felt they had the right to know.”
What the Family Said
The test results are consistent with statements from representatives for the Salgado Araujo family, who had maintained the substance was likely granulated salt — used by construction workers to create a homemade electrolyte mix to brave the summer heat.
David Donatti, an attorney at the ACLU of Texas representing the family, said the federal government was “more interested in creating a false narrative than in seeking the truth.”
“Lorenzo Salgado Araujo should still be alive today, and nothing about the government’s so-called ‘search’ could have changed that fact,” Donatti added. “That search has now proven what the Salgado family has said all along: Lorenzo was a hardworking man who made homes for Houston families.”
The Investigation
The FBI and ICE’s internal oversight office are both reviewing the July 7 shooting, though federal officials launched the investigation as one looking into the potential assault on an agent. Teare’s office is conducting its own probe, and he told CBS News he’s “more than prepared” to prosecute ICE agents if he finds criminal wrongdoing.
ICE has said Salgado Araujo was living in the U.S. illegally, though it has not disputed that he lacked a criminal record.
In an interview with CBS News, Salgado Araujo’s eldest sons, both American citizens, described their father as a hardworking man who loved music and his family.
“He was drawn by the promise that in America you can, if you put in the work, you’ll get paid what you deserve,” Lorenzo Salgado Jr. said.
The Bottom Line
A substance found in the van of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican immigrant killed by an ICE agent in Houston, has tested negative for drugs. The FBI had previously suggested the substance was meth. The Harris County District Attorney’s office confirmed the test results Friday and notified the family. ICE has maintained the agent acted in self-defense, but the family’s attorney says the government created a “false narrative” about the case. The shooting remains under investigation.
