Key witness in disputed ICE shooting of San Antonio’s Ruben Ray Martinez dies in fiery crash

Witness in March 2025 South Padre Island shooting dies in San Antonio wreck

Joshua Orta, 25, the passenger in a vehicle driven by San Antonio resident Ruben Ray Martinez when Martinez was fatally shot by a federal immigration agent in March 2025, has died in a single-vehicle crash in San Antonio. Orta’s death occurred as Martinez’s family prepared legal action tied to the shooting, in which Orta’s account disputed federal statements describing why an agent fired.

San Antonio police reported that a 25-year-old man was killed early Saturday after a vehicle entered a curved highway exit at a high rate of speed, lost control, and struck a utility pole. The vehicle caught fire. Passengers escaped but were unable to pull the driver from the burning vehicle. Attorneys representing Martinez’s mother, Rachel Reyes, identified Orta as the driver who died.

What federal officials have said about the shooting

The Department of Homeland Security has said Martinez “intentionally ran over” a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent during an encounter near South Padre Island on March 15, 2025. DHS said another agent then fired “defensive shots” to protect agents and the public. An internal incident report described agents surrounding Martinez’s vehicle and states that after an agent was struck, a supervisory agent fired multiple rounds through the driver’s side window.

The shooting occurred after agents and local officers were directing traffic around a crash near a busy intersection. The incident has been under investigation by the Texas Rangers.

How the witness’s account differed

In a draft affidavit prepared after interviews with Orta in September, Orta described the vehicle as moving slowly while attempting to turn around in traffic. He said Martinez did not hit anyone and that an officer fired into the driver’s side window from close range without warning, commands, or an opportunity to comply. Orta also recounted that Martinez was pulled from the vehicle and handcuffed, and he described a delay before medical aid was provided.

At the center of the dispute is whether Martinez’s vehicle struck an agent and whether lethal force was necessary in the seconds that followed.

Investigations and next steps

Martinez’s family has been preparing a wrongful-death lawsuit connected to the shooting. The Texas Rangers confirmed the case remains under investigation, and questions remain about the full scope of witness interviews and evidence collection completed before Orta’s death.

• Martinez, 23 at the time of his death, was a U.S. citizen.
• The agents involved have not been publicly identified.
• Orta was described by the family’s attorneys as a critical eyewitness whose statement was expected to be formalized.

With Orta’s death, the inquiry into the shooting now proceeds without the only publicly known eyewitness who was inside Martinez’s vehicle at the time shots were fired.