Petro Urges US Probe Into Colombian Man’s Death During ICE Raid
The Government of Colombia has asked U.S. authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into the death of Joan Sebastian Duran Guerrero, a Colombian citizen who died during an operation carried out by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the state of Maine.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed concern over the circumstances of the case and called for the facts to be fully clarified to determine whether there were any irregularities in the actions of the agents involved.
The 26-year-old man’s death occurred on July 13 in the city of Biddeford during an immigration enforcement operation that has raised questions within the local community, among migrant rights organizations, and in Colombia.
While U.S. authorities maintain that the use of force was justified, family members and witnesses have challenged the official account and are demanding an independent investigation to establish exactly what happened.
Petro urges US probe into Colombian man’s death during ICE raid
In an official statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the death of the Colombian citizen and expressed its condolences to his family. The Petro administration demanded that the competent U.S. authorities carry out an investigation to clearly establish what occurred during the immigration operation conducted in Biddeford, Maine.
The agency also reported that the Colombian Embassy in Washington and the Consulate in Boston remain in permanent contact with U.S. authorities and with Joan Sebastian Duran’s family to provide consular assistance and monitor the progress of the investigations.
In the document, Colombian diplomacy describes the incident as a “murder” and issued “an urgent call” to the United States to “carry out the corresponding investigations in order to promptly and thoroughly clarify the circumstances of this unfortunate event.”
Due to the ongoing judicial process and the protection of personal data, the Colombian government stated that it will not disclose additional information about the case file while the proceedings continue.
President Gustavo Petro also reacted to the case and called for a full clarification of what happened. The president described the Colombian man’s death as “an event of extreme gravity” and requested that the necessary diplomatic and legal actions be taken to ensure that justice is served.
El Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores expresa su rechazo por el asesinato de un ciudadano colombiano ocurrido en el estado de Maine, Estados Unidos, y expresa sus condolencias a sus familiares y seres allegados.https://t.co/ktTSrh8hrU pic.twitter.com/5zJmR259F7
— Cancillería Colombia (@CancilleriaCol) July 15, 2026
The victim was not even ICE’s target
Joan Sebastian Duran Guerrero, a 26-year-old Colombian from Bucaramanga, left his home on the morning of July 13 to go to one of his jobs when he was intercepted by ICE agents conducting a surveillance operation in a Biddeford neighborhood.
According to U.S. authorities, the officers were seeking to execute a deportation order against another person connected to that address, and Durán was not the primary target of the operation.
The official account states that agents attempted to stop the vehicle driven by the Colombian man. According to ICE, the driver tried to flee, and the agent fired after determining that there was a risk to public safety. That explanation has been presented as the justification for the use of deadly force.
However, several witnesses offered a different reconstruction of the events. Neighbors said they heard gunshots shortly after 7 a.m. and claimed that the young man was still showing signs of life when he was removed from the vehicle.
One of them said he heard Duran say, “I tried to stop,” before losing consciousness. Other residents questioned why he was later handcuffed when he was no longer showing any response, a detail that has intensified criticism of the operation.
The death of Joan Sebastian Duran sparked demonstrations in Biddeford, where residents, migrant advocacy organizations, and local authorities demanded transparency in the investigation. The city’s mayor and state leaders called for the release of all available evidence while inquiries into the actions of the federal agents continue.
The Colombian man’s family maintains that he had authorization to work in the United States and denies that he was the subject of any deportation proceedings. His relatives insist that he was a worker who supported his wife and three-year-old daughter, and therefore consider the outcome of the operation unjustifiable.
As the investigations move forward, voices in Colombia have begun questioning the “silence” of President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella—who has not commented on the incident—while in the United States, the case has become one of the most controversial episodes in U.S. immigration policy in recent months.
On the same day the Colombian citizen died, President Trump said that ICE “is doing a great job” and defended the work of the immigration enforcement agency.
JUSTICIA para Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero y su familia.
Condeno y me duele profundamente el desenlace de las políticas y discursos antimigrantes que hoy cobran la vida de un joven colombiano de 26 años, asesinado por un agente de la criminal y perseguidora ICE de Trump en el… pic.twitter.com/tXSlN2nwtf
— Antonio Sanguino (@AntonioSanguino) July 14, 2026