Early Wednesday morning, the calm of northwest Dallas was shattered when gunfire erupted at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) field office, leaving two detainees dead and a third critically wounded. The shooter, identified by law enforcement as a white male, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound as agents closed in. The attack, which unfolded around 6:40 a.m. on September 24, 2025, has sent shockwaves through the city and reignited debates over the safety of federal facilities and the increasingly fraught climate surrounding immigration enforcement.
According to Dallas police and the FBI, the assailant positioned himself on the rooftop of a law firm building adjacent to the ICE facility on North Stemmons Freeway, just blocks from Dallas Love Field airport. From this elevated vantage point, he opened fire on an unmarked transport van carrying detainees into the secure sally port of the field office. The rapid response of law enforcement and emergency services was evident as dozens of police units and ambulances converged on the scene, closing down Interstate 35 East and bringing morning traffic to a standstill.
Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux stated at a news conference, “When police responded to the shooting scene this morning at about 6:40 a.m., they found four people with gunshot wounds, two of whom were dead. The shooter was one of the two people who were dead at the scene.” The three non-shooter victims, all ICE detainees, were struck by the gunfire; two died, and the third was rushed to Parkland Hospital in critical condition. No ICE agents or law enforcement officers were injured in the attack, a fact confirmed by both ICE spokespersons and Homeland Security officials.
The FBI quickly classified the incident as an act of “targeted violence.” Joe Rothrock, special agent in charge of the Dallas FBI, revealed at the morning briefing that “early evidence that we’ve seen from rounds that were found near the suspected shooter contain messages that were anti-ICE in nature.” One shell casing, photographed and shared by FBI Director Kash Patel on social media, bore the message “ANTI-ICE” written in blue ink. Patel added, “While the investigation is ongoing, an initial review of the evidence shows an ideological motive behind this attack.”
Despite these clear signs of animosity toward ICE, authorities have not yet determined the shooter’s specific target or whether the attack was intended to harm detainees, law enforcement, or both. “The motive behind the shooting, or what the shooter was targeting, is not immediately clear,” Rothrock said. The victims’ identities have not been released as the investigation continues and families are notified.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed the details in a statement, noting, “Details are still emerging, but we can confirm there were multiple injuries and fatalities.” She acknowledged a recent uptick in threats and attacks against ICE agents and facilities, echoing the concerns of many within the agency. “This is the third shooting in Texas that has been directed at either ICE or Customs and Border Patrol this year,” Senator Ted Cruz remarked at a separate press conference, before urging, “Politically motivated violence is wrong. In America, we disagree. That’s fine, that’s the democratic process, but your political opponents are not Nazis.”
The Dallas ICE facility had already been on high alert following a bomb threat in late August. On August 25, 2025, 36-year-old Bratton Dean Wilkinson was arrested after arriving at the field office and claiming to have a bomb in his backpack, even displaying what he said was a “detonator” on his wrist. The incident forced a shelter-in-place order and brought out the bomb squad, but Wilkinson was taken into custody without further violence. He was later charged with making terroristic threats, according to the Federal Protective Service.
This latest shooting is part of a troubling pattern of violence targeting immigration enforcement in Texas. On July 4, a coordinated attack at the Prairieland Detention Center near Fort Worth saw assailants dressed in black, military-style clothing open fire and set off fireworks outside the facility. A local police officer was shot in the neck but survived, and more than a dozen individuals have since been charged in connection with the attack. Just days later, on July 7, a heavily armed man opened fire on a U.S. Border Patrol facility in McAllen, injuring two officers and a Border Patrol employee before being killed by law enforcement.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott was quick to respond to Wednesday’s events, posting on social media that “Texas fully supports ICE” and promising, “This assassination will NOT slow our arrest, detention, & deportation of illegal immigrants.” Abbott pledged that the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas National Guard would continue to work closely with ICE, and that a thorough investigation into the shooter’s motive would be conducted.
Other political leaders echoed calls for calm and unity. Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson urged the public to “be patient, remain calm, and let our law enforcement partners, our police department, do their job.” Vice President JD Vance, in a social media post, described the shooting as an “obsessive attack on law enforcement” and stated, “I’m praying for everyone hurt in this attack and for their families.”
For the many ICE employees, detainees, and their families, the attack has underscored the risks that have become a part of daily life in an era of heightened political polarization and public scrutiny of immigration enforcement. The field office, which houses both ICE’s Dallas Field Office and Enforcement and Removal Operations, is not a detention center but processes individuals and supports field operations throughout the region.
As the investigation continues, federal and local authorities are working to piece together the shooter’s background, possible affiliations, and the timeline of events leading up to the attack. Law enforcement sources told FOX 4 that they believe they have identified the shooter, but are awaiting confirmation before releasing his name. In the meantime, security at ICE and Customs and Border Protection facilities across Texas has been heightened, and officials are reviewing protocols to prevent future incidents.
Wednesday’s attack, with its chilling echoes of recent violence, has left Dallas—and the nation—grappling with difficult questions about security, ideology, and the increasingly dangerous intersection of politics and law enforcement. As Dallas Police Chief Comeaux summed up, “There are still a lot of unanswered questions, and I want to encourage all of you to exercise a little bit of restraint and allow [law enforcement] to do their job.”
With emergency vehicles still lining the freeway and investigators combing the scene for evidence, the city waits for answers—and for a measure of peace to return to its streets.
