Witness to immigration agent’s killing of friend last year dies in Texas car crash | Trump administration

The passenger in the car when Texas driver Ruben Ray Martinez was fatally shot in March 2025 by a federal immigration agent gave a lengthy statement to lawyers for the slain man’s family, disputing the government’s version of events.

That witness died Saturday in a fiery car crash in San Antonio, Martinez’s family’s attorney said.

Joshua Orta was riding with Martinez on a Spring Break trip when they came upon a group of local police and federal agents directing traffic around a crash at a busy intersection. In a statement released Friday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Martinez “intentionally knocked down a Homeland Security Investigation special agent,” causing another agent to fire “defensive shots to protect himself, his colleagues, and the general public.”

The Associated Press and other media outlets only recently reported details of Martinez’s death, which would mark at least six deadly shootings by federal agents since the coast-to-coast immigration crackdown began during Donald Trump’s second presidency. For 11 months, DHS did not publicly disclose that one of its agents had pulled the trigger.

According to the draft affidavit prepared following interviews in September, Orta allegedly said that Martinez did not hit a police officer with his vehicle, that their car was “just crawling while we were trying to turn around” and that a federal agent shot into the driver’s side window from about two feet away without “giving any warning, command or opportunity to comply.”

On Saturday, San Antonio police said a 25-year-old man was killed as he headed toward a curved highway exit at high speed before losing control and crashing into a utility pole. The passengers were able to escape when the vehicle caught fire, but they were unable to get the driver out.

Lawyers for Rachel Reyes, Martinez’s mother, said Orta was the man killed in the car crash. The draft affidavit said Martinez’s family was preparing to file a wrongful death lawsuit in the earlier shooting.

“First and foremost, Joshua’s death is a terrible tragedy for his family and friends,” said Alex Stamm, one of the attorneys representing the family. “As for Ruben’s death, the world has also lost a crucial eyewitness.”

DHS said Monday: “We stand by our initial statement. »

The Texas Rangers confirmed they are investigating Martinez’s shooting. The agency did not respond to questions Monday about whether it interviewed Orta before his death.

Martinez’s shooting bears at least some similarities to the Jan. 7 shooting that killed Renee Good. Good, a 37-year-old Minneapolis mother, was killed in the driver’s seat of her SUV by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent.

Trump administration officials initially tried to portray Good as a “domestic terrorist” who tried to ram police officers with her vehicle before several videos of her killing were released, casting doubt on the government’s account. The videos showed Good trying to get away from the officer who shot him, Jonathan Ross.

Law enforcement officers are generally trained not to step in front of vehicles due to the risk that they could be struck.

Neither Good nor Martinez had a criminal record.

Stamm, the family’s attorney, said Orta’s account confirmed that Martinez’s car was barely moving before the HSI officer opened fire.

“He also told us unequivocally that Ruben didn’t hit anyone,” Stamm said. “We believe Joshua’s story and, as we have seen recently in Minneapolis, Chicago and elsewhere, it is essential that the public be able to see all of the evidence in the government’s possession and that any witnesses come forward.”