ICE agents shoot man in California who tried to ram them with vehicle
ICE officers in California shot and wounded a man on Tuesday after he allegedly tried to ram one of them with his vehicle, according to the acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The man was transported to a hospital, and the FBI responded to the scene, ICE Director Todd Lyons said in a statement.
“As officers approached the car, the wanted gang member weaponized his vehicle in an attempt to run an officer over,” Lyons said. “Following their training, our officers fired defensive shots to protect themselves, their fellow agents, and the public.”
An unconfirmed video claiming to capture the moment ICE agents confronted the man — who the agency describes as an undocumented immigrant from El Salvador with suspected gang connections — began circulating on social media on Tuesday.
The video, captured from another car’s dash cam, shows agents surrounding a small hatchback before it reverses away and slams into a truck. The vehicle then accelerates forward and away from the agents, who appear to then fire into the car. The car drives over a cement median on the road before coming to a stop in the oncoming traffic lane.
Though the car does drive near the ICE agents, it does not appear in the video to at any point accelerate toward any of the agents.
The agency identified the man as Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez, and claimed he is a member of the 18th Street Gang. Hernandez is reportedly wanted in El Salvador for questioning related to a murder, Lyons said.
The shooting occurred in Patterson, a farm town of 25,000 people in the San Joaquin Valley, about 90 miles (145 km) southeast of San Francisco.
The FBI confirmed that it is investigating the shooting.
“We are conducting a thorough investigation in partnership with the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Office and are grateful for the Patterson community’s continued patience and support,” the FBI said, according to NBC News.
The Department of Homeland Security said in January that ICE officers experienced 66 vehicular attacks against them in the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term, up from two such incidents in the previous year.
