Federal immigration agents shot Oscar Belgal in the Bronx’s Marble Hill neighborhood during a targeted enforcement operation on October 8, 2026, as his 5-year-old child sat in the back seat of his vehicle. The confrontation triggered sharp political clashes between city and federal officials over enforcement tactics and public safety.
Federal Agents Shoot Driver in the Bronx
The confrontation unfolded around 4 p.m. in the Bronx neighborhood of Marble Hill.
Federal immigration agents surrounded a Honda CRV driven by 28-year-old Oscar Belgal before opening fire on the vehicle while a 5-year-old child sat in the back seat. Body-camera footage released by the New York City Police Department shows a man in a construction vest holding up a rifle and a handcuffed man sitting on the ground receiving medical attention.
New Yorkers are outraged tonight. Immigrant communities are terrified. And we are demanding answers.There is still much we don’t know about what happened in Marble Hill. But initial reports indicate ICE agents fired into a vehicle with a five-year-old child inside. Any trained…
State Sen. Gustavo Rivera, who witnessed the aftermath at the scene, said agents dispersed into private buildings as neighborhood residents gathered.
According to Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, the NYPD’s 50th Precinct Conditions Team responded to 911 calls reporting gunfire.
In yet another stunning display of ICE cruelty, Oscar Belgal is still being held in solitary confinement (with a bullet still in his neck) at the notorious Metropolitan Detention Center.I joined a group of religious leaders & advocates — who protest there weekly against cruel &… pic.twitter.com/Fq7K0BDVrV
Federal Officials Defend Operation After Arrest
Department of Homeland Security officials defended the operation, stating that agents acted appropriately because Belgal tried to drive his vehicle into law enforcement officers.
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters that agents acted appropriately, in part because New York refuses to honor the agency’s requests to detain undocumented people accused of crimes.
Federal records show Belgal was arrested for robbery in 2023, pleading guilty to fourth-degree grand larceny and receiving five years of probation, and faced an additional drug charge last year.
Mullin argued that Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions are necessary because local jurisdictions refuse to honor detainer requests for undocumented individuals accused of crimes.
Five days ago, ICE agents shot Oscar Belgal inside his car while his 5-year-old son sat in the back seat. A bullet remains lodged in his neck. He urgently needs surgery, yet he is being held in solitary confinement at MDC Brooklyn.The federal government is responsible for the…
Mayor Zohran Mamdani countered that no active warrant existed for Belgal’s arrest at the time of the shooting and condemned the use of plainclothes agents wearing construction vests and masks.
Today’s shooting is only further devastating confirmation of what we have long known, which is that ICE operates with impunity, that they sow chaos and terror across our country, that they have killed far more of our neighbors than they could ever have claimed to save.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani, via City of New York transcript
Protests Erupt Outside Hospital After Shooting
Following the shooting, protests erupted outside the hospital where Belgal was receiving medical care.
During clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement, police knocked Darializa Avila Chevalier—a Democratic Socialists of America candidate for the 15th Congressional District—to the ground.
Mamdani criticized the police response to the protest, calling the treatment of Chevalier unacceptable.
The incident also strained local political alliances.
Chevalier publicly demanded that Police Commissioner Tisch resign, criticizing local police involvement and alleging that the NYPD should have arrested the federal agents involved in the shooting.
While reports surfaced of friction between Mamdani and Chevalier over her attacks on his police commissioner, both figures publicly dismissed those claims, asserting they maintain a close working relationship.
City Launches Probe Into Federal Raid
Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced that the city would be doing its own full investigation of the entire 24-hour period, including the shooting and the NYPD response.
State lawmakers and city officials also continued pressing for accountability.
Rivera pointed to legislation passed in Albany to shield residents from federal overreach, while demanding that the Department of Homeland Security release any body camera footage capturing the event.
Mamdani and local leaders reiterated demands for federal immigration enforcement to halt local operations, emphasizing that municipal residents should not face the threat of armed federal agents operating in plainclothes across city streets.
