HOUSTON – Hugo Balderras-Ibarra, the immigration attorney representing two of three men who were in the van with Lorenzo Salgado Arraujo during last week’s deadly ICE shooting, is facing a felony assault charge, according to Harris County court records.
Balderas-Ibarra was indicted on a felony assault family violence impeding breathing charge in February of this year.
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According to charging documents, Balderas-Ibarra is charged with felony assault family violence by impeding breathing in connection with an incident on May 30, 2024. Investigators say the woman told police the couple had been dating since August 2023 and had recently moved in together when the relationship became abusive. She told investigators she decided to leave after finding something on Balderas-Ibarra’s phone while he was showering and went to the airport early before a flight to Florida.
The affidavit states Balderas-Ibarra agreed to bring her luggage to the airport. When he arrived, the woman told investigators he threw her luggage to the ground, then grabbed her by the neck as she bent down to pick it up. She alleged he squeezed her throat, twisted it and prevented her from breathing for several seconds.
According to the affidavit, an officer documented redness and swelling on her neck through photographs taken that day. The woman later identified Balderas-Ibarra through his Texas driver’s license photo, according to court records.
Balderas-Ibarra is also facing a kidnapping and battery charge in Seminole County, Florida, according to court records there. His sentencing for those charges is scheduled for July 15.
He also has a criminal history in Iowa, according to court records. He was found guilty of domestic assault in 2009 and second-degree burglary in 2008 in that state.
Balderras-Ibarra is representing detainees Daniel Tirado Pantoja and José Trinidad Rojas Pliego, who are currently being held at the Montgomery Processing Center in Conroe.
According to the Texas State Bar website, Balderras-Ibarra is licensed to practice with a probationary license. He’s been licensed to practice law in Texas since January 2025.
The three men with 52-year-old Lorenzo Salgado Araujo who was fatally shot by an immigration agent earlier this week disputed the federal government’s narrative of the deadly episode, saying Lorenzo Salgado Araujo never tried to run over anyone, according to the Washington Post.
The men told Balderas-Ibarra that they were on their way to a construction job site after buying ice and water about 6:30 a.m. When they pulled up to a stoplight they noticed an unmarked vehicle following them, the newspaper reported.
As Salgado Araujo began to accelerate at a green light, the other vehicle got onto the shoulder, accelerated and cut in front of the van, the men said, according to Balderas-Ibarra’s account.
Salgado Araujo then made a U-turn and that’s when agents turned on the police lights on their unmarked vehicle, the Post reported. At that point Salgado Araujo, according to the newspaper, was not driving more than 5 miles per hour when agents rammed their vehicles into his work van.
KPRC 2 has reached out to Balderas-Ibarra for comment and we are waiting to hear back. We also reached out to his defense attorney Timothy Adams.
We have also reached out to LULAC and Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia’s office.