Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX) has yet to comment on a fatal shooting in Irving that was allegedly committed by an illegal alien.
Two employees at a Chick-fil-A in Irving were shot and killed last week. The suspect, Oved Bernardo Mendoza Argueta, was arrested and charged with murder. The El Salvadoran native came into the United States after illegally crossing the border, The New York Post reported.
Allred’s office and campaign did not respond to a request for comment about the Irving tragedy. His district office is in Richardson, roughly 20 miles from the crime scene. Irving is just outside his congressional district, which largely consists of Dallas suburbs.
Police said Mendoza Argueta has a hold from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which requested to take him into federal custody. His wife worked at the Chick-fil-A in Irving, witnessed the shooting, and helped police identify him before the arrest.
Allred, who is running against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), released statements in recent years in response to mass shootings in the Texas towns of Uvalde and Cleveland.
The Texas congressman tweeted in recent weeks about National Selfie Day and Pride Month. However, he has not tweeted or issued any press releases about the Irving shooting.
Allred similarly has yet to comment on the murder of a 12-year-old girl in Houston last month, which was allegedly committed by two illegal aliens.
A pro-Cruz PAC launched a six-figure advertisement campaign this year that focuses on Allred’s previous claim that a border wall is “racist,” as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
Allred, who took office in 2019, has voted with President Joe Biden 100% of the time, according to FiveThirtyEight.
However, Allred voted this year to condemn Biden for his handling of the southern border amid record-high crossings. Still, he consistently voted against Republican-led measures to increase border security, as previously reported by DX.
The congressman introduced a bill last month requiring the federal government to assess how it can address staffing shortages at the southern border. However, he skipped a vote on border security in April, minutes after he voted to send $60 billion of taxpayer funds to Ukraine, as previously reported by DX.
Polling data in recent months shows Cruz leads Allred by anywhere from 3 to 11 percentage points.