ICE agents shoot 18th Street Gang member who ‘weaponized his vehicle’ in California
Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Tuesday shot a gang member who tried to run them down with his car as they moved to arrest him, officials said.
The ICE agents were conducting a targeted vehicle stop in the Central Valley town of Patterson to arrest 18th Street Gang member Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez, who is wanted in El Salvador in connection to a murder, according to authorities.
Todd Lyons, the acting director of ICE, said in a statement that Hernandez tried to run the agents down as they moved to take him into custody.
“As officers approached the car, the wanted gang member weaponized his vehicle in an attempt to run an officer over,” said Lyons.
“Following their training, our officers fired defensive shots to protect themselves, their fellow agents, and the public,” he added.
Hernandez was taken to a local hospital, Lyons said. Federal agents on the scene are investigating the incident.
The condition of Hernandez was unknown.
A dramatic dashcam video of the shooting shows the moment Hernandez turned on the ICE agents.
The video starts with the witness’s car turning onto Del Puerto canyon road at I-5.
Agents have Hernandez pulled over to the right of the road between two enforcement vehicles.
A one agent appears to open the driver side door of the black hatchback driven by Herandez, the car peels out in reverse, and the agents draw their weapons.
Hernandez slams his car into the ICE truck parked behind him, ripping the passenger side door from his hatchback.
The hatchback driven by Hernandez then races forward and onto the road, at another ICE agent who jumps out of the way.
The hatchback makes a U turn and jumps the median, into oncoming traffic.
It’s unclear when officers fired on Hernandez or when he was stopped. Images from the scene show the hatchback with bullet holes in the windshield.
ICE has not said how many shots were fired. The agency has not said when Hernandez came to the US or provided any other details on his activities or background.
The Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Office said it is “assisting with an officer-involved shooting in our jurisdiction involving agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement,” in a post on Facebook.
“At this time, we can confirm that no local law enforcement was involved in the incident,” the sheriff’s office said.
The exact site of the incident remains unclear but the sheriff’s office said the on- and off-ramps on Interstate 5 at Sperry Avenue near Patterson are closed for the remainder of the day, and video shows an ongoing investigation at that location.
There will be a large law enforcement presence in the area while the investigation continues, with significant traffic delays, the sheriff’s office said.
The 18th Street Gang, also known as Barrio 18, is a gigantic and extremely violent transnational criminal organization founded in Los Angeles in the 1960s more than 50,000 members across the US, Mexico, and Central America.
Known for murder and extortion, 18th Street is closely allied with the Mexican Mafia and controls a large portion of the narcotics trade in Los Angeles and around the country.
The gang has been a target for ICE agents and local police alike.
Los Angeles Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation in February orchestrated a massive takedown of the 18th Street gang’s leadership in LA, where it is known as the largest street gang in the city.
Operation Dead Horse resulted more than a dozen arrests for racketeering, murder, and drug trafficking. The operation aimed to dismantle the gang’s control over a portion of MacArthur Park.
During the investigation, federal and local law enforcement seized more than 175 pounds of methamphetamine and fentanyl from 18th Street members and associates.
On the last day of the operation, March 6, officers seized $80,000 in cash, 10 pounds of fentanyl, five pounds of methamphetamine, and six firearms.
ICE agents in California in recent weeks have made a number of gang related arrests.
Federal immigration agents in San Diego last month captured a machete-wielding MS-13 executioner known as “the witch” who was wanted for a brutal gang murder in his home country of El Salvador.
David Antonio Aviles Perez, 35, had been sought on an international warrant for aggravated murder by authorities in El Salvador.
Aviles Perez was also arrested in 2023 for assault with a deadly weapon after he allegedly swung a machete at a man in Monterey, California.
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