ICE agent faces assault charge after hitting Texas man with SUV

Mario Alberto Morales, a 33-year-old Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, was indicted on Friday for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The charge stems from an incident on October 10 where he drove his vehicle into Miguel Parra Hernandez, a 48-year-old construction worker in Texas. Surveillance footage reviewed by officials shows the agent veering his SUV into Parra Hernandez, who was running across a restaurant parking lot.

Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare announced the indictment at a press conference in Houston. He stated that the evidence against Morales was as clear as any he had prosecuted or investigated in his career. A grand jury returned the indictment on Friday morning after hearing the case details. Teare noted that Morales had been hired by ICE in August 2025 as part of the agency's expanded operations in several US cities. He added that he had not received Morales's training records and was not familiar with the background that led to his hiring.

The collision resulted in multiple leg fractures and a hip injury for Parra Hernandez. Morales was driving an unmarked Jeep Cherokee when he attempted to stop a pickup truck. Two men jumped from the truck and fled. Parra Hernandez, who had no criminal record or active deportation order, ran across the lot and was hit by the pursuing vehicle. In a 911 call made immediately after the crash, Morales told the dispatcher that Parra Hernandez ran in front of his vehicle. An official ICE account released the next day repeated this assertion.

Sheriff Ed Gonzalez revealed that Morales's SUV contained two handcuffed detainees from an unrelated operation at the time of the crash. Gonzalez said he knew of no law enforcement agency that would deem carrying restrained individuals in a moving vehicle acceptable during a high-speed pursuit. He described the situation as very unsafe, noting that the detainees had limited movement in the backseat. Teare also pointed out that ICE deported at least two material witnesses within a week of the incident, doing so over the prosecutor's objection.

ICE responded to the indictment with a statement calling the allegations of intentional impact reckless and false. A spokesperson described the charge as a political stunt by local officials and stated that federal officers should only be investigated by other federal agencies. The agency identified Jose Mendoza-Cervantes as the target of the operation. However, the immigration advocacy group FIEL stated that the photo released by ICE showed Jose Hector Jimenez, a man who died in 2017 while being pursued by federal authorities. The whereabouts of the actual target remain unknown.

Teare criticized the agency's conduct during the immigration crackdown, noting a documented drop in reports of domestic violence and aggravated robberies by victims who feared deportation. He argued that the fear instilled in the community made residents less safe. Parra Hernandez remains in ICE custody, and his lawyers said he would need numerous surgeries to recover. Court dates are currently being scheduled to try to deport him, despite his ongoing rehabilitation.

This indictment follows a similar charge in Minnesota in January, where an ICE officer was accused of shooting and wounding a Venezuelan man. Teare's office is also investigating the July fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston, an immigrant who was not the intended target of that enforcement operation. The case against Morales highlights the legal and operational tensions arising from the agency's recent expansion and enforcement tactics.