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US immigration officials have defended the actions of ICE agents who opened fire on a man in New York City while his five-year-old son sat in the back seat of the vehicle, with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin stating on October 9 that officers had no knowledge of the child’s presence at the time. Mullin argued that Oscar Belgal, the 28-year-old Dominican national targeted in the operation, had placed the child in danger by refusing to comply with orders during the arrest attempt in the Marble Hill neighborhood of the Bronx. The Department of Homeland Security described Belgal as having associations with the Trinitarios gang and a criminal record that included a conviction for grand larceny along with multiple arrests for assault, robbery, drug possession and weapons charges.
Marcos Charles, executive associate director at ICE, told reporters that agents had used vehicles to block Belgal’s car after he ignored commands to exit during the October 8 operation, according to accounts provided to multiple news outlets including CNN and Reuters. Charles said Belgal accelerated and struck two government vehicles before weaponizing his car by driving toward other officers, prompting agents to fire in the belief that their lives and those of the public were at risk. The shooting, which occurred around 4 p.m. in a residential area, left Belgal with a superficial neck wound, and he remained conscious as he received immediate aid before being taken to a hospital.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani condemned the incident as unconscionable, telling a press conference that early reports showed agents had surrounded the car containing both Belgal and the child before discharging multiple rounds. Mamdani, who said he had spoken with President Donald Trump about the matter, called for an end to ICE enforcement operations in the city and stressed that the child was physically unharmed and later placed with family members. New York Governor Kathy Hochul issued a statement demanding a full and transparent accounting from federal authorities, as reported by Yahoo News and other regional outlets.
The episode marks one of more than 20 instances in which immigration agents have shot individuals since the start of President Trump’s second term in January 2025, with at least seven of those proving fatal, according to data compiled by The Marshall Project. Many of the prior cases also involved suspects inside vehicles, and a Reuters review of six earlier violent encounters found that official narratives initially advanced by DHS were later contradicted by video evidence or court records. In the Belgal case, the FBI has joined the investigation while ICE officials indicated they plan to pursue his removal from the United States as soon as possible.
Belgal had previously evaded an ICE arrest attempt in September and was the subject of a Homeland Security investigation that linked him to knowledge of a separate shooting, Mullin explained during the October 9 briefing covered by NBC News and Politico. The legal organization representing him informed the BBC that attorneys had not yet been able to meet with Belgal, who was transferred to a detention facility following medical treatment. Police body camera footage released by the NYPD and analyzed by the BBC showed officers arriving at the scene to assist the wounded man, with Commissioner Jessica Tisch confirming that the child underwent a wellness check and was safe with relatives.
Critics of the administration’s immigration policies have pointed to New York’s sanctuary measures, which limit local cooperation with federal agents on non-violent cases, as contributing to the need for such at-large arrests in community settings. Mullin used the press conference to rebuke those policies, stating that they force officers into unpredictable and dangerous situations, as quoted in Reuters coverage. The DHS had directed agents nationwide to increase daily arrests by an additional 1,000 people just days before the New York incident, according to reporting by Mother Jones.
