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Illegal Immigrant Admits to Ramming Border Patrol Vehicle in Portland Before Officer Opened Fire
Nino-Moncada yelled ‘f*** ICE’ while being treated for his wounds after the shooting, according to prosecutors.
Luis David Nino-Moncada, a suspected member of the Venezuelan gang Tren De Aragua, is facing criminal charges after allegedly ramming his car repeatedly into a Border Patrol vehicle during a traffic stop in Portland, Oregon last week.
Nino-Moncada was charged with aggravated assault of a federal officer with a deadly or dangerous weapon and depredation of federal property in excess of $1,000, according to a criminal complaint filed by the Department of Justice. The DOJ said that Nino-Moncada was previously deported in 2024.
When the alleged assailant was in the hospital being treated for his wounds following the incident, he told FBI agents that he had rammed the Border Patrol vehicle intentionally and was aware at the time that the unoccupied vehicle belonged to immigration enforcement officers.
“In the interview, LUIS NINO MONCADA admitted to intentionally ramming the Border Patrol vehicle in an attempt to flee, and he stated that he knew they were immigration enforcement vehicles,” the criminal complaint reads.
Border Patrol agents were attempting to arrest a female associate of Nino-Moncada’s, Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras, who DHS says is a part of a Tren De Aragua prostitution ring. She was caught and released at the Texas border in 2024 under the Biden administration.
Nino-Moncada was driving the car with Zambrano-Contreras in the passenger seat when federal agents stopped them and approached their vehicle. Agents gave orders for the pair to exit the vehicle, according to the criminal complaint, at which time Nino-Moncada reversed the vehicle, hitting the patrol car “with enough speed and force to cause significant damage.”
“LUIS NINO-MONCADA then put the target vehicle in drive moving forward and continued the forward/reverse maneuver multiple times, striking the Border Patrol vehicle multiple times,” the complaint reads. “A Border Patrol agent interviewed by FBI special agents described being fearful that LUIS NINO-MONCADA could strike them and other Border Patrol agents with the target vehicle.”
Fearing for his own safety and that of his fellow officers, one of the agents opened fire on Nino-Moncado’s vehicle. Both Nino-Moncada and Zambrano-Contreras were later hospitalized with gunshot wounds after fleeing the scene.
“Anyone who crosses the red line of assaulting law enforcement will be met with the full force of this Justice Department,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement. “This man — an illegal alien with ties to a foreign terrorist organization — should NEVER have been in our country to begin with, and we will ensure he NEVER walks free in America again.”
Nino-Moncada called 911 from a nearby apartment complex following the incident to seek medical help. As medical personnel were applying a tourniquet to Nino-Moncada, the complaint said he yelled, “F*ck ICE.”
Photos from the scene show significant damage to the border patrol vehicle, including damage to the front bumper — which appears to be torn off the vehicle — smashed headlights, and dents on the front driver-side door panel, among other noted damage.
The pursuit of Zambrano-Contreras was initiated because she was required to check in with ICE officers, which she failed to do, initiating a warrant for her arrest. Law enforcement has connected her with a previous shooting over a bad prostitution deal, according to the DOJ.
Following the shooting, Oregon Democrats immediately condemned Border Patrol, with Portland Mayor Keith Wilson warning that “reckless,” “militarized agents” are bringing violence to the streets “all across America.” Oregon Governor Tina Kotek said that federal agents “are hurting people and they are destroying day by day what we hold dear.”
The incident comes after Renee Nicole Good was shot and killed in Minneapolis after refusing to exit her vehicle and driving in the direction of an ICE agent. Good belonged to a Minnesota ICE watch group which trains activists to impede agents in the performance of their duties. Anti-ICE protests have erupted across the country following her death.
Nino-Moncada is set to make his first court appearance Monday afternoon.