Community members and the organization FIEL held a vigil on Thursday to demand the release of Miguel Parra-Hernandez, who was struck by an ICE agent’s SUV in northwest Harris County earlier this month. This gathering came just hours after another incident involving ICE officers in the area.
The vigil took place near the intersection of Clay Road and Highway 6, the location where Parra-Hernandez was hit on October 10. Surveillance footage reportedly shows the SUV colliding with him as he ran across a parking lot. His attorney has stated that Parra-Hernandez sustained a broken leg from the incident.
ICE has asserted that Parra-Hernandez ran in front of the vehicle and maintains that the agent did not intentionally strike him. However, the Harris County district attorney has expressed a belief that the collision may have been deliberate. Both the district attorney’s office and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office have initiated investigations into the incident.
ICE agents were reportedly trying to apprehend Jose Mendoza-Cervantes, who they claim was seen entering Parra-Hernandez’s truck. Yet, Parra-Hernandez’s attorney refutes this account, asserting that his client does not know Mendoza-Cervantes and that the wanted individual was not present in the vehicle.
Currently, the ICE agent involved in the incident is on administrative leave pending an internal investigation, which ICE describes as standard procedure.
During the vigil, Cesar Espinosa from FIEL Houston highlighted that Parra-Hernandez remains hospitalized while in ICE custody and called for his immediate release. “Today we are doubling down on our petition, on our plea, on our demand for him to be released immediately,” Espinosa stated.
In a separate incident earlier on the same day, ICE officers were involved in a minor crash while attempting to stop Luis Eduardo Villanueva Loredo, who is described by DHS as being in the U.S. illegally. According to DHS, Villanueva Loredo drove into a ditch after officers activated their emergency lights and sirens. In trying to escape the ditch, he reportedly collided with the officers’ vehicle before fleeing on foot. He later complained of chest pains and was taken to a hospital for precautionary measures, remaining in ICE custody thereafter.
FIEL has expressed concern regarding the proximity of these two incidents, occurring less than two weeks apart, and noted that community members are feeling frightened as a result.
