1 dead, 2 in critical condition after shooting at Dallas ICE facility

ICE director says Dallas facility shooting was his 'worst nightmare'

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Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons called the shooting his “worst nightmare.”

For Lyons, who previously worked in a Dallas ICE office, the shooting “really hit home.”

“Seeing the photos today, some of the bullets were in an office that I used to have there,” he said on “Top Story with Tom Llamas.” “It’s just a horrible feeling. People always ask me what’s the thing that keeps me up at night. It’s the safety of the men and women of ICE.” 

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A 29-year-old Texas man opened fire on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Dallas today, the second instance in two weeks of a gunman setting up with a rifle on a rooftop, opening fire and communicating a message through writing on bullets.

A bullet found near the shooter had the words “anti-ICE” written on it, according to the FBI. Other recent shooters, including those who assassinated Charlie Kirk and killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, have also engraved messages on bullets.

The anti-ICE messaging surprised Joshua Jahn’s brother, Noah Jahn.

“He didn’t have strong feelings about ICE as far as I knew,” Noah Jahn said of his brother, who DHS officials said fired at the ICE building “indiscriminately.”

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More ICE agents and law enforcement officers will be hired in response to the Dallas ICE facility shooting, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said.

“We’re going to hire more ICE officers. We’re going to go out and hire more law enforcement officers. We’re not going to stand for this in the United States,” she said on Fox News' “The Ingraham Angle."

Noem also called the shooter “evil” when she was asked about the anti-ICE messaging written on a bullet, and she pointed blame at Democratic lawmakers who she said are calling law enforcement “names” as part of the problem. 

Vice President JD Vance told reporters today's shooting was "politically motivated."

Vance said in Concord, North Carolina, that evidence that's "not yet public" indicates "we know this person was politically motivated. They were politically motivated to go after law enforcement. They were politically motivated to go after people who are enforcing our border."

He also pointed blame at political rhetoric and called the suspect "a violent left-wing extremist."

"You don’t have to agree with my immigration policies. You don’t have to agree with Donald Trump’s immigration policies, but if your political rhetoric encourages violence against our law enforcement, you can go straight to hell," he said. 

One of the injured victims is a Mexican national, Mexico’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said.

The victim is hospitalized and receiving medical care, the ministry said, citing information local authorities confirmed to the Mexican Consulate General in Dallas.

Consular officials are in contact with the victim’s family and providing support and legal assistance. 

"The consulate is in ongoing communication with the authorities in charge of the investigation and is waiting for authorization to visit the hospitalized Mexican citizen," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that he has been briefed on the shooting.

He said it's “despicable” that shell casings bore anti-ICE messaging.

“The Brave Men and Women of ICE are just trying to do their jobs, and remove the 'WORST of the WORST' Criminals out of our Country, but they are facing an unprecedented increase in threats, violence,” he wrote, casting blame on the political left and calling for Democrats to stop rhetoric against ICE and law enforcement.

Texas state Rep. Rafael Anchía, a Democrat who represents part of Dallas County, told NBC News in a statement that “we will not allow this moment to be exploited for division or premature blame.”

“Our Dallas community stands united against targeted gun violence. We have endured too many shootings and tragic losses, and we will not allow this moment to be exploited for division or premature blame,” he said. “This is not about politics — every person who values their neighbor must denounce violence in all forms and commit to meaningful action to address the gun violence epidemic."

DHS corrected its earlier statement on the number of people who were killed, saying this afternoon that one person was dead and two others were in critical condition.

DHS said in a statement it was issuing “a correction to information it released earlier today regarding the attack that took place at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Dallas field office” and that as of 2:30 p.m. local time in Dallas, “one detainee is deceased, and two others are in critical condition.”

Earlier today, DHS said two detainees were killed and one was injured.

Mayra Robleto, 71, was at the ICE field office this morning for an immigration appointment when she heard a barrage of bullets seeming to come from outside the building. 

Her thoughts immediately turned to her daughter, Denise, who was outside waiting for her. Robleto was in an area of the building where people come to wait for appointments with ICE as part of their immigration process. Others like her there for appointments also had loved ones just outside the facility when the shooting began.

“I was terrified something would happen to her. A lot of people had family members there,” Robleto, an immigrant from Nicaragua, said in Spanish. Being apart from her daughter left her “anguished,” she said.

Texas state Sen. Nathan Johnson, a Democrat who represents Dallas County, told NBC News this is not a time to foment further division in the country by politicizing the shooting and making assumptions when many questions remain unanswered.

“I reject the inclination that many people feel to attribute this to the Democratic Party or the Republican Party. We don’t know who this shooter was, who he thought he was affiliated with,” Johnson said. 

“These are disturbed people committing awful acts, but we’re in an environment where people feel terrified of each other,” he said. “We need to figure out how to stop it.”

Witnesses are rattled and emotional after three people were shot. One of the victims died, and the shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said. NBC News’ George Solis spoke with witnesses in the facility. 

Witness says she took cover after hearing gunshots at Dallas ICE facility 

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Republicans have posted messages on social media praising ICE and, in some cases, blaming Democrats and "the far-left" for the shooting.

While law enforcement officials have not yet provided a detailed look at the shooter's motive, FBI Director Kash Patel said on X that an initial review of evidence indicated it was “ideological.” The post oincluded a photo that showed an unspent shell casing engraved with the words “ANTI-ICE.”

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on X that “horrendous killings must serve as a wake-up call to the far-left that their rhetoric about ICE has consequences.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted an “I stand with ICE” graphic on X.

In 2016, Joshua Jahn was charged in Texas with delivering marijuana in an amount greater than ¼-ounce but less than 5 pounds, which is a felony. He pleaded guilty, records show. He was a registered independent and last voted in November, according to public records.

Jahn has recently been associated with an address in Oklahoma, with previous residences listed in Texas, according to records.

State criminal records describe Jahn as a male with brown hair and brown eyes, standing 6 feet tall and weighing 210 pounds. The records also said he was born in Texas. 

A brother of the man suspected of opening fire on the ICE facility his brother was not especially interested in politics and had not voiced opinions to his family opposing ICE.

The suspect, Joshua Jahn, 29, is believed to have shot himself after having opened fire, killing two ICE detainees and wounding one other. Law enforcement officials said “anti-ICE messages” were scrawled on bullets recovered near the shooter’s body.

“He didn’t have strong feelings about ICE as far as I knew,” said Noah Jahn, his older brother.

NBC News spoke to Noah Jahn before he had gotten word that his brother was identified as the shooter. He described his brother as “unique,” without elaborating. But he said Joshua was not one he ever would have thought would be involved in a politically motivated shooting.

“I didn’t think he was politically interested,” Jahn said. “He wasn’t interested in politics on either side as far as I knew.”

Suspected Dallas ICE facility shooter identified

03:23

Multiple senior law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation identified the shooting suspect as 29-year-old Joshua Jahn.

The shooter who shot three detainees, killing one, at a Dallas ICE facility this morning "fired indiscriminately at the ICE building, including at a van in the sallyport where the victims were shot," from a nearby roof, DHS officials said in a statement.

Officials referred to the shooter as a "sniper."

The third victim is in critical condition, according to DHS. Their injuries were not clear.

The DHS said that three people were shot and two had died, despite previous statements from the Dallas Police Department.

The shooter is also dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, officials have said. No ICE officers were physically injured.

DHS said the shooting was an attack on ICE, pointing to a bullet shell casing that had "ANTI-ICE" written on it in blue ink.

Denise Robleto said that as gunfire targeting the ICE field office in Dallas rang out, she was terrified for her mother, who was inside the facility at the time of the shooting. 

"Nobody knew what was really happening inside," she said in Spanish through tears. 

Robleto said she was on a video call with her sister at the time, who urged her to flee as the shots continued.

"You could hear the gunshots very, very close to us," she said. "But my mom was inside, I couldn’t leave her there."

Robleto said she wanted to seek shelter in the ICE facility and spoke to an official there. When police arrived at the scene, she was allowed to enter. People inside the field office were panicking, and officials helped to try to calm everyone, asking them all to sit down, she said.

Arianny Sierra said she was in her car with her 9-year-old son, waiting for her husband to return from an appointment at the ICE facility in Dallas this morning, when a series of shots rang out.

"The shots began at around 6:10 a.m. There were like 20 shots in a row," Sierra told NBC News in Spanish from the scene. "I sheltered myself under the car with my son."

She said police then came and sheltered them in the ICE facility. 

Sierra said she and her family came to the U.S. to flee violence in her home country.

"Thank God my family is OK," she said, tears streaming down her face. 

Authorities did not immediately identify victims of Wednesday's shooting at an ICE field office in Dallas, but reiterated that no one from law enforcement was injured.

"While we’re not releasing identities of any victims at this time, what I can confirm for you is no members of law enforcement were hurt during this attack," said Joseph Rothrock, the special agent in charge of the Dallas field office.

Rothrock appealed for the public's assistance.

"Any piece of information will be helpful," he told reporters. "This will be an ongoing investigation between us, a number of federal partners, and our local partners again to ensure that anyone responsible is held accountable."

At least five shell casings were found at the Dallas shooting scene, one of which had "ANTI-ICE" written on it in blue ink, according to a photo of the casings FBI Director Kash Patel shared on X.

"While the investigation is ongoing, an initial review of the evidence shows an idealogical motive behind this attack," Patel added.

"These despicable, politically motivated attacks against law enforcement are not a one-off," Patel wrote, referring to an incident two months ago in which someone "ambushed" an ICE facility in Prarieland, Texas, and was targeting ICE officers.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said today that "politically motivated violence is wrong" and called on politicians to stop "using rhetoric demonizing ICE and demonizing CBP."

"In America, we disagree," Cruz said a news conference. "That's fine, that's the democratic process, but your political opponents are not Nazis."

Cruz called on Americans to "work together without demonizing each other, without attacking each other."

This is the third shooting in Texas that has been directed at either ICE or Customs and Border Patrol, Cruz said.

'This must stop': Sen. Cruz decries violence, ICE criticism after Dallas shooting

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Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux said 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, Comeaux said.

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson pleaded for patience from the public during the Wednesday morning news conference, as authorities continue to investigate the shooting near an ICE field office.

"Let’s be patient, let’s remain calm, and let’s let our law enforcement partners, our police department, do their job," Johnson told reporters.

"This is an active investigation. 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 them to do their job."

Dallas mayor calls for prayer after deadly ICE facility shooting 

03:27

The suspected shooter engaged in an act of "targeted violence," Joe Rothrock, special agent in charge of the Dallas FBI, said Wednesday at a morning news conference.

"What I can also share with you is that early evidence that we’ve seen from rounds that were found near the suspected shooter contains messages that are anti-ICE in nature," Rothrock said.

 The victims' identities will not be released at this time, but Rothrock said no law enforcement personnel were hurt during the attack.

FBI investigating ICE facility shooting as act of 'targeted violence'

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Gov. Greg Abbott responded to the Wednesday morning shooting on X, stating that Texas "fully supports ICE" and noted that the "Texas Dept. of Public Safety & Texas National Guard work closely with ICE."

"This assassination will NOT slow our arrest, detention, & deportation of illegal immigrants," Abbott added without further context. "We will work with ICE & the Dallas Police Dept. to get to the bottom of the assassin’s motive."

An ICE spokesperson confirmed to NBC News that all three people shot at the ICE facility in Dallas were ICE detainees and that no ICE officers were hurt. Two of the victims have died.

The suspected shooter is dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said.

The shooter fired multiple rounds from a roof or an elevated position down into the field office’s sally port, an ICE spokesperson confirmed.

The shooter fired multiple rounds from a nearby roof or elevated position down on the field office's sally port, or secure entryway, an ICE spokesperson said.

It is not clear yet what the shooter's target was. Only detainees were hit, but the spokesperson said it remains unclear whether the shooter was targeting them.

The shooter who opened fire on a Dallas ICE facility this morning did so from an adjacent building, the Dallas Police Department said in a statement on X.

Police responded to a call at around 6:40 a.m. local time in the 8100 block of North Stemmons Freeway.

Two people were transported to the hospital with gunshot wounds, and one died at the scene, police said. An ICE spokesperson told NBC News that two people died in the shooting, not including the suspect.

Police said the investigation is ongoing and a media briefing will occur later today.

The ICE building where Wednesday's gunfire erupted had recently received a bomb threat, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said.

Investigators will be looking into how long the shooter might've been planning this attack, McLaughlin told Fox News Channel's "America’s Newsroom."

The DHS official did not disclose how close the shooter got to the ICE field office, but stressed this was not a detention center. 

Two of the three people shot at a Dallas ICE field office this morning are dead, an ICE spokesperson said. The third person is in the hospital.

The three people shot do not include the shooter, who is dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

All three people shot were detainees at the facility, and no ICE agents were shot or hurt.

The spokesperson stated that the information about the situation remains fluid.

In a social media post, Vice President JD Vance called the shooting at a Dallas ICE facility this morning an "obsessive attack on law enforcement" that "must stop."

It was not immediately clear whether any ICE agents were wounded. So far, officials have only said three people were shot.

"I’m praying for everyone hurt in this attack and for their families," Vance wrote on X.

The FBI office in Dallas is responding to a shooting at an ICE field office in the city this morning, the agency said in an email to NBC News.

The Dallas Police Department is the lead responding agency, the FBI statement said.

The ICE facility is in northwest Dallas, just off the I-35E highway.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed the shooting at a Dallas ICE facility this morning in a social media post.

"Details are still emerging, but we can confirm there were multiple injuries and fatalities," she said on X.

At least one of the fatalities is the suspected shooter, who died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Noem said.

Noem said the motive is not yet known.

Emergency services respond to the shooting this morning.  KXAS-TV

Three people have been shot at an ICE facility in Dallas, according to an ICE spokesperson. The suspected shooter is dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.