U.S. Border Patrol agents shot and wounded two Venezuelan nationals during Portland vehicle stop

On January 8, 2026, U.S. Border Patrol agents shot and wounded two Venezuelan nationals, Luis David Nino-Moncada, 33, and Yorlenys Zambrano-Contreras, 32, during a vehicle stop outside a medical clinic tied to Adventist Health in Southeast Portland, Oregon. Six Border Patrol agents in unmarked vehicles blocked in Nino-Moncada's pickup truck while conducting what the FBI later described as a targeted enforcement operation for Zambrano-Contreras, the passenger. An agent fired two rounds through the driver's-side window, striking Nino-Moncada twice in the arm and Zambrano-Contreras in the chest; both were hospitalized. DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said at the time that Nino-Moncada "weaponized his vehicle and attempted to run over the law enforcement agents," and that the agent "fired a defensive shot."

None of the six agents present wore body cameras, and no video of the shooting was immediately available, leaving the government's account uncorroborated in the days after. DHS and Portland Police Chief Bob Day also asserted the pair had a "nexus" to the Tren de Aragua gang without offering supporting documentation. Federal public defender Fidel Cassino-DuCloux, representing Nino-Moncada, called the gang claim unsupported: "The federal government has claimed without evidence that he is a member of Tren de Aragua, just as they have many other Venezuelan citizens," describing it as "a well-worn playbook that the government has developed to justify the dangerous and unprofessional conduct of its agents."

Federal prosecutors charged Nino-Moncada with assaulting a federal officer and damaging federal property, and separately charged Zambrano-Contreras in Texas with illegal entry. Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield opened a formal state investigation into whether the federal officers acted outside their lawful authority. Portland Mayor Keith Wilson called the shooting "deeply troubling" and urged ICE to halt all Portland operations; Gov. Tina Kotek said federal agents "are shattering trust." Six protesters were arrested near a Portland ICE facility that evening. The shooting came one day after an ICE officer fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis, intensifying scrutiny of the administration's use of force during its immigration-enforcement surge.

Updates

2026-01-23 — Zambrano-Contreras pleaded guilty to illegal entry, given probation [3]

Yorlenys Zambrano-Contreras pleaded guilty to a federal misdemeanor for entering the United States without inspection in September 2023. A federal judge sentenced her to one year of probation; she remained in ICE custody at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington, pending removal.

2026-02-03 — Surveillance video of the shooting scene surfaced [4]

Fora Health, a treatment facility across the parking lot from where the shooting occurred, released partial surveillance footage of the incident to a local television station, contradicting earlier reporting that no video of the shooting existed.

2026-07-28 — Nino-Moncada pleaded guilty to a reduced charge as feds dropped the assault charge [5]

Luis Nino-Moncada pleaded guilty to damaging federal property under a deal in which prosecutors dropped the more serious charge of assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon. The plea agreement stated only that Nino-Moncada backed his truck into an unoccupied, parked Border Patrol vehicle while attempting to flee and made no claim that he tried to run over agents; federal prosecutors had also told a judge months earlier that they were not alleging he was a gang member, retreating from DHS's initial Tren de Aragua claim. Nino-Moncada agreed to pay $24,413 in restitution and not contest removal from the country.