ICE agent shoots man in Bronx car with child present

An ICE agent shot a man in his car in the Marble Hill neighbourhood of the Bronx, New York City, around 4pm on Thursday, during an enforcement operation along Marble Hill Avenue. A five-year-old child was in the back seat and was physically unharmed, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said. The person shot was conscious at a nearby hospital and expected to survive, according to law enforcement sources.theguardian.com

The shooting matters because it is the first confirmed instance of an ICE agent firing on a person in New York City since President Trump returned to office, and it came with a child in the vehicle. The New York Police Department said its officers were not involved and were not on scene at the time. Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.straitstimes.com

What the mayor and police said

Early reports indicate agents surrounded the man and a five-year-old child in his car before firing multiple rounds, Mamdani said in a statement. The mayor called it "an unconscionable and incredibly serious situation" and said he had called the President. The NYPD said on X that there was a shooting involving federal law enforcement agents and that the person shot was currently conscious and receiving medical attention.nbcnews.com

A senior official said the five-year-old child was in the back seat at the time of the incident. Cellphone video published by the New York Times appeared to show an agent in a yellow vest holding what appeared to be an assault rifle while talking on the phone. NY1 reported videos showing bullet holes in the windshield of an SUV at the scene.

Multiple law enforcement sources said the team of ICE officers was in the neighbourhood looking for a man with a criminal record. A senior official said the suspect had a past robbery arrest resulting in a grand larceny conviction and a current open drug case. Pedro Almarez, owner of a nearby eatery, said he heard shots and saw several officers in ICE attire.

Who the officers were looking for

The agents involved were part of the Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency of ICE, Customs and Border Protection and Border Patrol, an NYPD spokesperson said, adding that federal authorities were investigating. Homeland Security and the FBI responded to the scene alongside the NYPD. The department did not immediately respond to an inquiry on Thursday evening.

Gov. Kathy Hochul said she had been briefed on the shooting and wrote: "We expect federal authorities to provide a full and transparent accounting of the circumstances surrounding this incident. New Yorkers deserve to know exactly what happened and why." Mamdani said he would demand that the President end all ICE enforcement actions in the city.

Protesters gathered soon after the shooting, some holding signs reading "Jail all killer ICE agents" and "Leave our neighbors alone". NYPD set up barricades at a nearby hospital where the man was reportedly receiving treatment. Mamdani ended his statement with "Abolish ICE," and said he would not stand by while ICE agents terrorise communities.

The shooting follows a pattern of deadly force by immigration officers. Last month, an immigration officer shot Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, 28, while he was in his car during a traffic stop in Texas; federal prosecutors then charged the man with assault. Since Trump returned to office last year, US immigration officers have shot at least two dozen people, including three US citizens who were killed.