Attorney Says White Crystals in ICE Shooting Victim's Van Were Salt, Not Drugs

Q: After killing the wrong man, why is the F.B.I. now searching his van for drugs?

The F.B.I. appears to be searching the van for drugs because agents found small baggies inside after the shooting and now want to determine whether they contained controlled substances, not because drugs were the original reason for the stop. The known facts point to a post-incident evidentiary step. ICE agents were pursuing Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston while looking for someone else, and officials have said neither he nor his passengers were the intended targets. The search-warrant application, signed July 11, cited photographs of small bags in the white Ford Transit van. That gave investigators a basis to seek judicial approval to test the contents. The F.B.I. has also said it is trying to establish “all facts related to this incident, including what may have caused the occupants of the vehicle to flee.” In that context, checking for drugs could help investigators assess possible explanations for the chase and evaluate the competing accounts of what happened before the fatal shot was fired. What is not supported by the record is any claim that drugs prompted the encounter in the first place. Authorities had no prior indication that drugs were in the van, and there has been no public evidence that Salgado Araujo or the other men had a drug-related history. So the drug search looks less like the reason for the operation than a later investigative avenue opened after the killing, based on items seen inside the vehicle.

3 articles · Updated · NBC News · Jul 17

Ruby L. Powers said the white crystal-like substance that prompted an FBI search of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s van was granulated salt used with lemon and water as a homemade electrolyte mix for outdoor workers.
The U.S. attorney said the FBI executed the warrant Wednesday after officers saw several small bags in plain view and suspected possible methamphetamine or other narcotics trafficking, though authorities have not disclosed any test results.
Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare and civil rights advocates said the warrant’s rapid public release was unusual and argued any drug findings would have no bearing on whether the fatal ICE shooting was justified.
Salgado Araujo, a father of 3, was killed during a Houston-area traffic stop last week after ICE agents tried to arrest him while looking for other men; DHS says he used the van as a weapon, while passengers’ lawyer disputes that account.
The shooting is being investigated by DHS’ inspector general, the Harris County district attorney and the Texas Rangers, adding to scrutiny after another ICE traffic-stop killing in Maine less than a week later.