ICE says man shot by agent in Ontario was interfering with an operation

ONTARIO, Calif. (KABC) -- An ICE operation in Ontario turned violent Thursday morning after a man was shot by an ICE agent and then fled the scene. ICE said he tried to intervene in enforcement action and that's why they opened fire.

The shooting happened at around 6:30 a.m. in the 2800 block of South Vineyard Avenue.

ICE said that the man who was shot wasn't their original target.

They said they tried to conduct a traffic stop of the driver of a gray sedan when the driver of a Lexus SUV tried to intervene.

ICE said he drove up, turned around, threw his car in reverse and tried to run them over.

That's when an ICE agent opened fire, shooting out of the passenger window.

Video from AIR7 showed a sedan boxed in by an unmarked SUV and a pickup truck on South Vineyard Avenue. The street was shut down at the scene as the investigation continued, but it has reopened.

Ontario police responded to a "request for emergency assistance" after Department of Homeland Security officers were involved in a shooting, authorities said.

The request was made at 6:33 a.m. in the 2800 block of South Vineyard Avenue, the Ontario Police Department said in a statement, adding that its officers were not involved in the initial incident.

The location is in a residential neighborhood west of the Whispering Lakes Golf Course.

"Several Ontario Police Officers responded to the scene to provide traffic control and scene security while DHS conducted their investigation," the police department said in a statement. Homeland Security and the FBI were investigating the shooting.

The brother of the man who was shot spoke to Eyewitness News. He said he lives in the nearby mobile park and his brother ran in screaming that he'd been shot in the shoulder.

Police tape surrounded one of the residences on the property of the mobile home park and the Lexus SUV with a shattered window was parked near the home.

Family drove the man to the hospital where they say he's been released, but they now have no idea where he is. They also said he is a U.S. citizen.

Immigrants rights groups were furious over what happened.

"You have federal agents coming in with masked faces, and not having to identify themselves, not having to provide a warrant," said Javier Hernandez, the executive director for the Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice.

"The systems that are supposed to protect us are no longer there," said Hernandez. "When the Supreme Court says you can racially profile people, now you have U.S. citizens who are being racially profiled, you have here possibly a U.S. citizen that was shot today."

Even though the man who they shot is a U.S. citizen, he was not the original target.

ICE did not provide any information on why they were conducting the vehicle stop, nor are they releasing information about the person who allegedly tried to ram them with their vehicle.

Resident Jane Westmoreland says there has been an increase in ICE sweeps in the area in recent months.

"At one time they were keeping the gates closed, and I was told by people who lived at the mobile park that they were doing that because ICE had come in without permission," said Westmoreland.

In a statement, ICE said in part "This is another example of the threats our ICE officers are facing day-in and day-out as they risk their lives to enforce the law and arrest criminals. ICE officers now face a 1000% increase in assaults them including cars being used as weapons and death threats against our agents are up 8000%.

"This violence must end. Let me be clear: Anyone who assaults, impedes, obstructs, or threatens the lives of federal officers will be arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

Congresswoman Norma Torres also released a statement saying ICE has refused to provide her office with official information despite multiple requests.

"There must be a full, transparent investigation with immediate updates. As we've seen in numerous incidents over the past several months, statements from the Department cannot be taken at face value," the statement read.

"Witness statements, body-camera footage, security footage, and all relevant information must be released so the public can judge for themselves what really happened. Accountability is not optional; it is demanded."