ICE Officer with Violent History Kills Colombian National in Maine

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer, David Brouillette, shot and killed Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a 25-year-old Colombian national, near his home in Biddeford, Maine. According to multiple reports, Brouillette has struggled with severe mental illness since childhood and has been accused of attacking women over the years.

Brouillette's troubling past raises questions about how thoroughly the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) vetted recruits during a hiring spree to support President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. At least 10 people have died in encounters with immigration agents since Trump launched the crackdown after retaking office, per AP News. DHS has not released Brouillette's name but stated that Durán Guerrero attempted to flee and an officer discharged their weapon fearing for public safety.

Brouillette, a 37-year-old Army veteran, did not respond to requests for comment. However, three relatives who spoke with him since the shooting, including his ex-wife Ashley Brouillette and daughter Madison Brouillette, said he told them he acted in self-defense. According to Los Angeles Times, Brouillette claimed that Durán Guerrero was trying to run him over with a car. An ICE spokesperson declined to confirm or deny attempts to identify the officer but noted that the officer has nearly a decade of federal law enforcement experience.

The White House referred all questions about the shooting and Brouillette to ICE. According to HuffPost, Brouillette's ex-wife Ashley said he left a voicemail mocking her for taking out a restraining order against him, suggesting that she and other women in her 'bloodline' should die. She shared the voicemail with AP News, which included threats of violence. Brouillette's immediate relative described him as 'extremely mentally ill,' noting he attempted suicide twice at age 12 and was hospitalized multiple times.

Brouillette has a history of violent behavior towards women in his life over the years. His ex-wife Ashley told CBS News that she divorced him in 2009 because he had become physically violent with her, which began after she got pregnant with their daughter. According to Ashley Brouillette, he once threw boiling water at her while she was holding their child — an incident her mother Avis Collins also recounted.

Brouillette's oldest daughter, Madison Brouillette, said she also witnessed her dad's volatility. 'I watched my dad struggle a lot with a lot of things,' she told the AP. She said she came home from school once and he told her he had been sitting on a tree stump with a gun to his head.

An immediate relative of David Brouillette who spoke on the condition that their name not be used said he was diagnosed with severe bipolar disorder and attention deficit disorder as a child. The relative described him as 'extremely mentally ill' and said he attempted suicide twice at age 12 and was hospitalized multiple times.

Brouillette's military records show he enlisted in the Maine Army National Guard but changed jobs to be a medical logistics specialist. He deployed to Afghanistan from May 2012 to February 2013 and eventually left the Army as a sergeant in December 2015. His immediate relative believes Brouillette's time abroad worsened his emotional struggles: 'Afghanistan destroyed him -- trained him to be a killing monster, a machine. They took someone who was extremely mentally ill and turned him into a killing machine.'

After his discharge, Brouillette held various jobs — some in or adjacent to law enforcement — and was injured in an accident while training to become a firefighter. He worked for the Maine Correctional Center, the state's Health and Human Services Department, and as a police officer at a Department of Veterans Affairs medical center near Augusta.

In March 2025, Brouillette passed an exam to become a real estate sales agent. His license was active until December. In late 2025, around the time he joined ICE, his ex-wife Ashley said he left a three-minute voicemail mocking her for taking out a restraining order against him.