The Legal Aid Society has filed a petition seeking the immediate release of Oscar Belgal, a 28-year-old father of two, who was shot by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers on October 8, 2026.

Mr. Belgal remains detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn with a bullet lodged in his neck, loss of sensation on the left side of his face, and impaired hearing in his left ear. Despite his serious injuries, he has yet to receive surgery to remove the bullet.

Masked ICE officers in civilian clothing approached Mr. Belgal’s vehicle with firearms drawn, without identifying themselves or presenting a warrant. Terrified for his and his son’s lives, Mr. Belgal watched as an officer shattered his driver-side window before opening fire into the vehicle. ICE officers fired at least seven shots, striking Mr. Belgal in the neck as his five-year-old son cowered in the back seat. After being shot, Mr. Belgal exited the vehicle pleading for help, fearing he was dying, while his son screamed that the masked men had killed his father.

Rather than providing immediate medical assistance, ICE officers threw Mr. Belgal to the ground, handcuffed him, and left him bleeding and fading in and out of consciousness. NYPD officers ultimately intervened to secure medical assistance. Doctors advised that Mr. Belgal required surgery to remove the bullet and instructed him to return for treatment during the week of October 12. Instead, ICE transferred him into detention.

“Mr. Belgal’s detention was unlawful from its inception. ICE officers shot him in the neck in front of his five-year-old son, failed to provide him with immediate medical assistance, and now continue to hold him in a facility notorious for medical neglect,” said Perry McAninch and Elyssa Williams, counsel for Mr. Belgal and attorneys with Legal Aid. “With a bullet still lodged in his neck and his serious medical needs unmet, every additional day in custody puts him at further risk. The Court must intervene and order his immediate release.”