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(The Center Square) – Assaults against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are up 1,300%, vehicular attacks are up 3,200% and death threats are up 8,000%, the Department of Homeland Security said after a U.S. citizen was shot and killed during an alleged vehicular attack in Minneapolis this week.
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Federal authorities argue the shooting was justified and in self-defense. Local and state officials say otherwise.
One day after the Minneapolis shooting, two Venezuelan nationals were shot by a Border Patrol agent after they attempted to run him over with their vehicle in Portland, Ore., the Department of Homeland Security said. DHS also describes the shooting as self-defense and justified.
The two Venezuelans and alleged Tren de Aragua members “weaponized their vehicle against Border Patrol in Portland. The agent took immediate action to defend himself and others, shooting them,” DHS said.
After the shooting in Portland, the Venezuelans fled the scene, DHS said. They reportedly drove nearly five miles to an apartment complex where they called emergency medical services and were transported to separate hospitals, DHS said.
Venezuelans Luis David Nino-Moncada suffered an injury to his arm and Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras was hit in her chest. Nino-Moncada is currently in FBI custody.
“Only one day after an ICE officer was almost ran over in Minneapolis, two vicious Tren de Aragua gang members – let loose on American streets by Joe Biden – weaponized their vehicle against Border Patrol in Portland,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said. “The agent took immediate action to defend himself and others, shooting them. Thankfully, no law enforcement was injured as these criminals fled.”
Zambrano-Contreras illegally entered the U.S. in 2023 near El Paso, Texas, and was released into the country by the Biden administration, according to DHS. Since illegally entering, she’s “played an active role in a Tren de Aragua prostitution ring and was involved with a prior shooting in Portland in July,” DHS said.
Nino-Moncada illegally entered the U.S. in 2022 and was released into the country by the Biden administration. Since then, he’s been arrested on a DUI charge and unauthorized use of a vehicle, DHS said. He also has a final order of removal from a federal immigration judge, according to ICE records.
Enforcement actions continue as attacks against ICE officers have increased by unprecedented numbers in less than one year. By November, assaults against ICE officers had increased by 1,000% and death threats by 8,000%, The Center Square reported.
ICE and Border Patrol officers also experienced an historic surge of vehicular attacks. By November, there had been 71 reported vehicular attacks against U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, including Border Patrol, compared to 45 vehicular attacks during the same period in 2024, a 58% increase, The Center Square reported.
Over the same time frame, 28 vehicular attacks were reported against ICE officers compared to two attacks in 2024, a 1,300% increase.
That percentage has since increased nearly three-fold to 3,200% as of last week, DHS said.
The Minneapolis and Portland shootings are the latest of several that have occurred since last fall.
In September, Mexican national Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez was shot and killed after he “refused to follow law enforcements commands and drove his car at law enforcement officers. One of the ICE officers was hit by the car and dragged a significant distance. Fearing for his own life, the officer fired his weapon,” DHS said.
In October, Mexican national Carlitos Ricardo Parias, a TikTok content creator, was shot after ramming his vehicle into a law enforcement vehicle and then fleeing the scene, DHS said. He was hit in the elbow; a U.S. Marshal’s hand was struck by a ricocheted bullet. A federal judge recently dismissed federal assault charges brought against Parias.
Also in October, U.S. citizen Carlos Jimenez was shot in the shoulder after federal authorities claim he allegedly accelerated towards federal agents during an immigration enforcement operation in Los Angeles.
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This article was originally published at The Center Square. Photo Credit: Immigration and Customs Enforcement/Flickr.
