Piecing together the events of the fatal ICE shooting in Biddeford

BIDDEFORD — With vehicles cleared and the police tape taken down, blood still stained the crosswalk at the corner of Pool and Hill streets in Biddeford Monday night, marking the spot where federal immigration agents shot and killed 25-year-old Johan Sebastián that morning.

At least 22 people have been shot by federal agents since January 2025, when President Donald Trump began his second term and immigration crackdown. Sebastián is at least the fourth person federal agents killed this year. 

Maine Morning Star compiled eyewitness accounts, photographs and videos from bystanders to piece together a timeline of what happened Monday, given that accounts by federal authorities are contradictory.

Independent U.S. Sen. Angus King said Monday afternoon that Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told him the man “was in a vehicle, pulled out in the vehicle, and,” in the secretary’s words, “weaponized” the vehicle before being shot by an ICE agent.

DHS has repeated this allegation about several previous U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shootings, including less than a week ago when agents shot and killed 52-year-old Lorenzo Araujo in Houston. There appears to be no body camera footage of the Biddeford shooting, as was also the case in Houston.

But ICE gave a different explanation when it confirmed the Biddeford shooting in a statement 12 hours after it happened. 

In that statement, which ICE shared with Maine Morning Star Monday night, the agency said law enforcement attempted to conduct a vehicle stop as they were doing targeted surveillance on the last known address of a person with a final order of removal. “The vehicle attempted to flee the scene and fearing for public safety an officer discharged his weapon,” the statement from an unnamed ICE spokesperson read. 

Mullin initially told King that the man ICE shot had been ordered to leave the country and had been the target of an arrest warrant. But Mullin clarified to King hours later that the victim had not been the target. ICE did not address whether that was the case in its statement.

Presente! Maine said Sebastián was originally from Columbia, legally authorized to work in the U.S. and had a Social Security number. A LexisNexis search also flagged he had a Social Security number. The victim was originally identified as Joan Sebastian Guerrero, 26, but the Maine Immigrant Rights Coalition confirmed to Maine Morning Star that his family would like him to be referred to as Johan Sebastián and that he was 25 years old.

As of Tuesday afternoon, federal officials still had not confirmed the victim’s name nor that of the officer who shot him. The Maine Attorney General’s Office said the agent was affiliated with ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division and will be placed on administrative leave, which is standard practice in officer-involved shootings. 

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were reportedly directed Tuesday to largely end vehicle stops until further notice.

The FBI and the Maine Attorney General’s Office are investigating the fatal shooting in Biddeford. 

The Biddeford Police Department declined a records request for 911 call records, saying the investigating agencies will be handling all requests related to the shooting. So far, the Maine Attorney General’s Office has acknowledged requests for the call logs and communications between federal agencies and the state office since the shooting, though noted some responsive records may be confidential. 

Biddeford Police Department has said its officers were not involved in the incident other than responding after the fact and blocking off the scene, along with Saco and the Maine State Police, who are all assisting in the investigation. 

People nearby reported hearing several gunshots a bit after 7 a.m., which ring camera footage from a few nearby residences also captured. Pictures of Sebastián’s car after the shooting show four bullet holes in the driver’s side of the windshield. 

Security camera footage from a nearby business obtained by the Portland Press Herald captured the aftermath of the shooting. At 7:17 a.m., a white car enters the intersection of Pool and Hill streets and begins to turn right in a circle as two plainclothes officers in green vests approach. The car continues in a slow circle as the agents follow, one appearing to try to open the driver’s door. 

A white SUV, presumably belonging to the agents, bumps into the passenger side of the car and brings the car to a stop.  At least one officer draws a gun before opening the driver’s door and pulling the driver out and onto the road.

Another video taken from a different angle, which a witness provided to the Bangor Daily News, shows agents pulling a limp body from a car and then tying the man’s hands behind his back.

The area was blocked off by police tape soon after. 

The community quickly began to mobilize. Mainers flooded Mechanics Park by early afternoon and marched up Main Street, stopping at Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins’ local office to chant “Vote her out!” Some protesters traveled hours to visit Biddeford after hearing the news, while demonstrations also occurred in other cities across the state. A Go-Fund me has also been set up for Sebastián’s partner and 3-year-old daughter. 

By the time the intersection of Pool and Hill streets reopened to the public by late afternoon, the only remaining indication that the shooting had occurred was the blood on the street. By that evening, someone in chalk had written: “THIS IS BLOOD.”