ICE Shooting During Arrest Operation Sparks Protests in New York’s Bronx
A 28-year-old man was wounded after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer opened fire during an arrest operation in the Marble Hill neighborhood of the Bronx, New York City, on Thursday afternoon. Authorities said the man’s injuries were not life-threatening.
The incident occurred around 4 p.m. near West 225th Street and Marble Hill Avenue. According to CBS News, ICE officers were attempting to arrest a Dominican Republic national when another man inside a gray Honda was shot. Preliminary investigative information indicates that the wounded man was not the primary target of the operation.
New York City Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the 28-year-old man was accompanied by a five-year-old child in the vehicle. Police camera footage showed the car reversing near a fire hydrant as a plainclothes federal officer approached the driver’s side window with a weapon. Another officer was positioned near the front driver’s side. The vehicle then moved forward and out of the camera’s view.
According to Tisch, an initial examination of evidence collected at the scene suggests that at least one ICE officer fired approximately seven shots. One bullet struck the driver in the neck, below his left ear. However, the moment the shots were fired was not captured on police cameras.
The Department of Homeland Security said ICE officers provided initial medical assistance to the injured man. NYPD officers later transported him to a hospital. The child was unharmed and placed in the care of a family member.
The wounded man was identified as Oscar Belgal. U.S. Representative Adriano Espaillat told CBS News that he visited the hospital and met with the man’s five-year-old son and the child’s mother. Espaillat said ICE officers were stationed outside the man’s hospital room and that he was not permitted to enter.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he held discussions lasting nearly two hours with President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin about securing the man’s release. The talks were unsuccessful, according to Mamdani, who also said ICE officers later took the injured man away in a vehicle.
Protests erupted outside NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital following the shooting. CBS News reported that demonstrators were seen blocking police vehicles and striking them. The NYPD erected barricades to control the situation. Protesters said the incident had intensified fear and anxiety among immigrant communities.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul expressed concern and called on federal authorities to provide a full and transparent account of what happened.
The Department of Homeland Security alleged that the wounded man had links to the Trinitarios gang. Commissioner Tisch said he had two previous arrests on record. In 2023, he was arrested on a robbery charge and later pleaded guilty to fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property. He was arrested again in 2025 in connection with alleged drug sales, and that case remains pending.
The NYPD said it had no involvement in the federal operation before the shooting. The investigation is now being handled by federal authorities.
CBS News reported that at least 30 shooting incidents involving Department of Homeland Security personnel had occurred during President Donald Trump’s second term, with some resulting in deaths.
