A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from deporting Oscar Bergal, a Dominican illegal immigrant shot by an ICE agent in the Bronx after he allegedly rammed two federal vehicles during an arrest attempt on October 8. U.S. District Judge Paul Oetken issued the two-page order on October 9, ruling that Bergal cannot be removed from the United States without a court order.
Oetken also barred federal authorities from transferring Bergal to any facility outside New York State or New Jersey. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to a request for comment before publication.
So who exactly are we protecting here? DHS says Bergal is an illegal immigrant with prior criminal convictions for grand larceny, multiple arrests for assault, robbery, armed theft, criminal sale of narcotic drugs, and possession of stolen property. Oh, and he was allegedly associated with the Trinitarios, the violent prison and street gang linked to the 2025 killing of a Customs and Border Protection officer. Real stand-up guy, this one. You can read more about the ICE shooting in the Bronx and how it unfolded.
According to DHS, ICE officers moved to arrest Bergal at 4 p.m. in the Marble Hill neighborhood of the Bronx. He allegedly refused to get out of his car and smashed into two government vehicles. When he allegedly drove toward the officers, they opened fire and struck him in the neck. He was hospitalized and later moved to a detention facility.
Here’s the gut-punch detail: Bergal’s five-year-old son was in the back seat. The boy was physically unharmed, thank God. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told Fox News that federal agents had no idea a child was in the vehicle, and he put the blame squarely where it belongs.
