ICE agents shoot man in car in northern California

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents shot a man in a vehicle in northern California on Tuesday.

ICE agents conducted a vehicle stop in Patterson, a rural agricultural town in California’s Central Valley about 80 miles east of San Jose, to arrest Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez, ICE director Todd Lyons said in a statement.

Lyons described Hernandez as a member of the Los Angeles 18th Street gang and said he was wanted for questioning in El Salvador related to a murder. Lyons did not provide evidence of that allegation. The details of that investigation remain unclear.

According to Lyons, as agents approached the car, Hernandez “weaponized his vehicle in an attempt to run an officer over”.

In response, the officers “fired defensive shots to protect themselves, their fellow agents, and the public”, Lyons said. It is unclear how many shots were fired.

KCRA-TV, an NBC affiliate in Sacramento, obtained dashcam footage showing the Tuesday incident.

In a video with no audio, three ICE agents were seen flanking a black sedan.

The black sedan was pinned between two other vehicles – respectively at its front and back – with flashing police lights.

As the officers appeared to reach into the vehicle, the black sedan reversed with its right passenger door open. That door collided with the car behind it.

The agents appeared to have their weapons drawn as the car reversed.

The black sedan then staggered forward in the direction of the officers, before taking a left turn to cross the median into the opposite side of traffic and disappearing from view in the clip.

The sheriff’s office wrote in a Tuesday post to Facebook that no local law enforcement officers were involved in the shooting. The local FBI office in Sacramento, which could not be reached for comment by phone, shared on social media that an investigation into the shooting was under way.

California governor Gavin Newsom’s office wrote on social media that he had been briefed on the incident. “As is established practice, we expect our federal law enforcement partners to appropriately collaborate with state and local law enforcement as this matter is investigated,” his office said.

The Patterson incident comes during a period of fierce scrutiny for ICE.

Over the past year, the Trump administration has ramped up raids and arrests targeting undocumented immigrants, as the president seeks to fulfill a campaign promise to secure the US-Mexico border.

The deployment of federal immigration agents across the nation has spurred many protests. ICE agents have faced condemnation over violent clashes with demonstrators and have been accused by critics of displaying excessive use of force against those they have sought to detain.

At least eight people have been shot by ICE agents in 2026.

Patterson is home to many Hispanic and Latino residents and is located in California’s Central Valley, a farming hub. The region has seen a surge in ICE arrests – up by 58% after Trump returned to office between 1 January and 31 July of last year, according to the Fresno Bee.

Patterson mayor Michael Clauzel did not immediately respond to a phone call for comment.