Attorney General Ellison praises charges against ICE agent in January 2026 Minneapolis shooting

Christian Castro charged with four counts of 2nd degree assault related to shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis

May 18, 2026 (SAINT PAUL) — Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s praised the charges that Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty filed today, along with the Attorney General’s Office, against ICE agent Christian Castro in the January 14, 2026 shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis in North Minneapolis. Castro is charged with four felony counts of 2nd-degree assault and one misdemeanor count of falsely reporting a crime.

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office is supporting the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office in prosecutions arising from Operation Metro Surge. 

"Nobody is above the law, including ICE agents,” Attorney General Ellison said. “The State of Minnesota must hold people accountable for violating the law and for harming Minnesotans. I support the filing of these charges, and I am working closely with Hennepin County Attorney Moriarty to ensure we reach a just outcome here."

As the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office states in its press release about the charges:

Mr. Castro, 52, discharged his weapon through the front door of a home knowing there were people who had just run inside. The bullet traveled through the door and struck Mr. Sosa-Celis’s leg, before making its final impact in the wall of a child’s room.

Contrary to the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) press release on January 15, Mr. Castro was not hit with any shovels, brooms, or weapons of any kind at any time during this incident . He was outside the house and alone in the front yard when he fired his weapon through the front door of the home.

The press release – along with its dozens of false statements – remains on the DHS website.