Lawyers: ICE agent did not identify himself before shooting — The Guardian
Lawyers for Oscar Belgal, who was wounded during an incident involving ICE agents in New York, United States, said that one of the agents did not identify himself before smashing the window of his car and opening fire. According to The Guardian, the Legal Aid Society filed a corresponding motion for Belgal's release in federal court in Brooklyn.
According to the defense's account, Belgal picked up his son from school and stopped near a fire hydrant while looking for a parking space. An armed masked man then ran up to the car, followed by other armed masked men. The lawyers claim that they did not show identification or explain to the driver who they were.
Lawyers' and DHS versions
In the court filing, the lawyers said that the first man smashed the driver's-side window with the barrel of a pistol and began firing into the vehicle, where Belgal's son was in the back seat. One of the bullets struck the man in the neck. According to the defense, Belgal learned that they were ICE agents only after regaining consciousness in the hospital.
The lawyers' version contradicts statements by the US Department of Homeland Security. Department representatives previously claimed that the agents opened fire after Belgal drove his car into two government vehicles and began moving toward other officers. DHS said the investigation is ongoing and did not comment on the lawyers' claims.
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What the video shows
Surveillance footage released by New York police captured part of the incident but does not provide a definitive answer about the circumstances of the shooting. In the video, a man in a sweatshirt and red cap runs up to the car with a pistol, then strikes the driver's window twice with the barrel of the weapon, after which the glass breaks. Another officer approaches the vehicle and draws a weapon.
Belgal then drove onto the street, and the subsequent events were outside the camera's field of view. Shortly afterward, his damaged car stopped near a concrete barrier: there were bullet holes in the windshield and rear window. Eyewitness video and body-camera footage show ICE agents providing Belgal with aid for a neck wound, while New York police took him to a hospital.
The lawyers said that Belgal is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn and has still not undergone surgery to remove the bullet from his neck. According to them, he has lost sensation on the left side of his face and has hearing impairment.
