The director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement broke the news on "CNN This Morning" that at least two people were killed and another was critically wounded Wednesday in a shooting at an agency facility in Dallas.
Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons told host John Berman he received word of the shooting moments before his scheduled appearance on the program, saying that he was unsure whether agency employees or detainees had been injured, but he said the shooter apparently was dead.
"Yeah, literally as I as coming here," Lyons said. "We were notified that there were shots fired at our Dallas field office. Right now, preliminary information is a possible sniper. We have three individuals that are down at this time. We're not sure on their condition. They've been taken to the hospital. We're hearing some reports that the shooter may be down from the Texas Department of Public Safety. The scene is secure. Obviously, right now, my hearts, and prayers are going out to my officers and agents. That's my biggest concern, and as well as everyone in that area."
"But this just shows the violence that's being increased against ICE officers and agents," Lyons added. "This is the second time now we've had a shooting at one of our facilities in the Dallas area, and really, it's it's it's just a sad time that we have to worry about violence against law enforcement."
Police responded to the shooting off Interstate 35, and investigators told WFAA-TV that the shooter's body was found on the roof of a nearby immigration attorney's office, and they confirmed after Lyons was on CNN that all three victims were detainees and two of them had died from their wounds.
"Obviously it's really chaotic," Lyons told Berman. "Dallas police department has been great. They're on scene. It's a large police presence there right now. You know, it could be employees, it could be civilians that were visiting the facility, it could be detainees. At this point, we're still working through that. We do know that three have definitely been shot. They're en route to the hospital right now. We had great support from locals on the ground that are helping us look for the active shooter, and like I said, right before I just walked on set, I got word that the shooter is down from a self-inflicted gunshot wound."
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