Update on Shooting Involving ICE Agents in NYC
The Secretary of Homeland Security, Markwayne Mullin, discussed the recent shooting incident involving immigration agents and a criminal illegal immigrant, stating to CBS News that body camera footage may not capture the complete situation. He emphasized that the foreign national involved, Oscar Belgal, placed his own son in danger during the incident.
On Thursday, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent fired upon 28-year-old Dominican national Oscar Belgal. Authorities say Belgal, known for a lengthy criminal history, accelerated his SUV toward several officers. During an appearance on “Face the Nation” on Sunday, Mullin spoke about the situation in New York City, especially after it was revealed that Belgal’s 5-year-old son was a passenger in the vehicle.
Mullin recounted, “We had our badges out, once again, giving lawful demands. He decided that he was going to accelerate and try to evade again.” He expressed regret that the situation escalated, stating, “We would have loved for him to exit the vehicle, like we asked him to. He decided not to. Unfortunately, because of the selfish behavior, he put his 5-year-old in danger.”
Belgal is recovering from injuries sustained in the shooting and is currently in a detention center, as reported by NewsNation. New York City’s Mayor, Zohran Mamdani, publicly condemned both the shooting and the presence of ICE in New York. His conversation with Mullin and President Trump on Thursday night focused on lobbying for Belgal’s release but did not succeed.
As of Sunday afternoon, the body camera footage from the ICE agent has not been released, but footage from the NYPD officers who arrived at the scene was made available shortly after the incident. Records indicate that Belgal entered the country illegally and has alleged connections to a violent Dominican-American gang, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Mullin noted, “What you’re not seeing is the actual audio footage or a different angle, where you have multiple officers approaching this individual named Oscar, with a long, very long extensive rap sheet.” He confirmed that the ICE body camera footage will be released once the investigation wraps up.
He highlighted Belgal’s extensive criminal background, mentioning multiple felony charges, including robbery and drug-related offenses, as well as strong gang affiliations and prior evasion of officers. “We knew he was armed. We knew he was dangerous,” Mullin pointed out, reflecting the risk posed during the encounter.
The DHS labeled Belgal “the definition of worst of the worst” in a social media post on Friday, emphasizing the dangers associated with his criminal history.
Mullin added that the agents were unaware of the child’s presence in Belgal’s vehicle at the time of the incident. He stressed that the responsibility for placing the child in a potentially hazardous situation fell on Belgal. “As a father of six kids, no way would I ever put my kids in danger,” he concluded.
