A little more than 24 hours after Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero was killed by federal agents in Biddeford, two makeshift memorials have been established while federal and state officials call for answers and the community’s patience.
By RANDY SEAVER | Editor
Located only a few feet away from where Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, 26, was shot and killed by federal immigration agents on Monday morning — a makeshift memorial has become a place where residents and others have laid flowers, candles and messages of mourning.
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“It is important for us to remember,” said one woman who asked to not be identified. “We cannot allow ourselves to forget what happened here. Grieving is important and necessary, but we should be using our grief to seek changes in the way we view immigration in this country.”
The investigation of the incident is ongoing and very few details are being released by the U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement Agency ICE.
According to U.S. Senator King, Guerrero was not the subject of the initial ICE investigation. Immigration advocacy groups – including the Maine Immigrant Rights Coalition – have said that Guerrero was authorized to work in the United States and had a Social Security card.
Stephen Shea, a 71-year-old freelance photographer from Portland, was taking photos of the memorial to “document the tragedy that should never have happened.”
Shea – struggling to hold back tears — said he retired nearly 10 years ago, and has since been traveling extensively throughout South America, Thailand and Europe. Two years ago, he married a woman from Chile, but says she is afraid to even visit the United States.
“When you travel outside of the United States, you quickly learn that people are people, no matter where they live,” Shea said. “Immigrants offer so much to our culture and enrich our lives with different foods, art and music. Immigrants make our country stronger.”
The city of Biddeford is working with Sweetser, one of Maine’s largest mental health providers to offer grief counseling and support for members of the community who may be having difficulty absorbing the news and overwhelming public commentary.
“It is important for us to
remember. We cannot allow ourselves
to forget what happened here.”
The free counseling sessions are open to anyone in the community who has been impacted by this event, directly or indirectly. No appointment is necessary.
The sessions are being offered on Tuesday, July 14, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the J. Richard Martin Community Center on Alfred Street; and on Wednesday, July 15, from 9 a.m. to noon at The Reach located at 118 Alfred Street.
. . .
What happened to America?
On the other side of Hill Street, a small group of anti-ICE protestors were standing vigil just feet from where Guerrero died.
Among the protestors on Hill Street on Tuesday afternoon was Troy Sargent, a Biddeford resident who will soon be moving to Portland where he will begin a new fifth-grade teaching position.
Sargent was holding a carboard sign that read “Veteran Against ICE.”
Sargent said he spent four years serving his country in the U.S. Army, including a one-year infantry tour in Afghanistan in 2012.
“I felt good and proud of my service,” he explained. “I felt like I was making a difference – like my country was helping people; enabling women to go to school or open businesses.”
Sargent said he swore an oath to defend the Constitution from all enemies, foreign and domestic.
Today, he says he is feeling disillusioned with the country where he was raised to believe in the virtue of America as a nation of laws and opportunity.
“What happened to due process?” Sargent asked. “What happened to our justice system? I was indoctrinated by the American dream, and I was willing to fight for freedom.
“I believe in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, but those things don’t just apply to people who look like you and me,” he added. “Those protections and principles belong to everyone standing in our country.”
Mechanics Park — near the banks of the Saco River at the intersection of Main and Water streets — has become another memorial location. Notes, messages and flowers have been woven into a chain-link fence that runs along the park’s northern border.
Mills, Collins offer official statements
Months before Guerrero’s death, Maine Gov. Janet Mills raised concerns about ICE enforcement activities in Maine.
“The reported end of ICE’s ‘enhanced operation’ in Maine does not end the pain and suffering that they have inflicted on communities across our state,” Mills wrote in a Jan. 29, 2026 media statement.
“The tactics of federal agents across the nation – including the killing of two American citizens in Minnesota – demand accountability from Congress,” Mills said.
Republican Senator Susan Collins – who is facing reelection in November — has drawn the ire of many anti-ICE protestors because of her support of the federal agency.
Collins issued a public statement Tuesday, calling on DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin to cease all non-urgent vehicle stops in the wake of yesterday’s deadly Biddeford shooting.
Collins said that Mullin agreed to her request.
“An impartial investigation into the shooting in Biddeford needs to proceed, as the details surrounding this tragedy are important,” Collins said in her prepared statement. “It is extremely unfortunate that the agent involved did not have a body-worn camera.”
Although Collins said it is clear that ICE needs to improve its performance, she also said that “it is important to remember that the work ICE does to protect our country goes far beyond immigration enforcement.”
“ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) is tasked with combating cartels, human smuggling, child exploitation, forced labor, and more,” Collins said. “Eliminating ICE would make our country less safe and endanger the lives and welfare of countless individuals.”
The Maine Republican Party also released an official statement regarding Monday’s fatal shooting in Biddeford.
“We all can agree that it is always a tragedy when a life is lost,” wrote Jim Deyermond, the party’s chairman. “The government and our law enforcement system are not perfect, just like people aren’t perfect, and we will always mourn the effects of this. We live in a broken world.
“We will avoid politicizing this event by remaining calm and trusting those investigating to be thorough and fair in the face of chaos.”
“We will avoid politicizing
— Jim Deyermond, chair, Maine GOP
this event by remaining calm
and trusting those investigating
to be thorough and fair in the
face of chaos.”
In his statement, Deyermond urged all Mainers to avoid jumping to conclusions, and to remain civil and patient as this situation continues to develop. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the loved ones of Joan Guerrero,” Deyermond said.
Advocates call for transparent investigation
. . .
Mufalo Chitam, executive director of the Maine Immigrant Rights Coalition (MIRC), spoke at Monday’s vigil in Mechanics Park.
In a formal media statement, Chitam called for accountability and transparency in the investigation of Monday’s shooting.
“Our communities are hurting,” Chitam said. “We are grieving, we are furious, and we will not allow his death to be treated as routine or inevitable. How much more harm must our communities endure before those with the power to act acknowledge that this has gone too far?”
MIRC is calling for a “prompt, independent and transparent” investigation.
“We want a full accounting of every agency and officer involved; the preservation of all body-camera footage, surveillance footage, communications, and other evidence; and the timely public release of findings consistent with the dignity and privacy of the victim and his family.”
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