On Christmas Eve, two individuals sustained injuries when U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents discharged their firearms at a van in Maryland. This incident occurred as the driver allegedly attempted to drive over the agents during an enforcement action, according to official statements.
Justin Mulcahy, a spokesperson for the Anne Arundel County Police Department, reported that officers arrived at West Court in Glen Burnie around 10:50 a.m. on Wednesday. They were responding to reports of a shooting incident involving agents from ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the ICE agents were performing duties in the area when they approached a white van, as per police accounts.
According to police, the van’s driver allegedly tried to run over the agents, which led the ICE personnel to fire at the vehicle.
Reports from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirm that ICE agents discharged their weapons after the driver made an attempt to ram into officers during the Christmas Eve operation. This incident resulted in two injuries and has triggered several investigations.
Following the gunfire, the van sped off but eventually came to a halt in a wooded section of a nearby residential area.
Mulacahy said one person inside the van was struck by gunfire and transported to an area hospital, where he was listed in stable condition.
Another person outside the van sustained minor injuries and was treated at an area hospital.
ICE agents opened fire on a van in Maryland after DHS says the driver attempted to ram officers during a Christmas Eve enforcement operation, leaving two injured and prompting multiple investigations. (DHS)
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said on X that the agents identified the driver of the van as Tiago Alexandre Sousa-Martins, an illegal alien from Portugal. Solomon Antonio Serrano-Esquivel, an illegal alien from El Salvador, was in the passenger.
According to DHS, the officers approached the van and told Sousa-Martins to turn off the engine, but instead, he refused and attempted to flee. Sousa-Martins also allegedly began to ram his vehicle into several ICE vehicles before driving the van at ICE agents.
“Fearing for their lives and public safety, the ICE officers defensively fired their service weapons, striking the driver,” DHS said. “Sousa-Martins then wrecked his van between two buildings, injuring the passenger.”
ICE agents opened fire on a van in Maryland after DHS says the driver attempted to ram officers during a Christmas Eve enforcement operation, leaving two injured and prompting multiple investigations. (DHS)
The agents rendered medical aid to both the driver and passenger, DHS added, before they were transported to the hospital for treatment.
“Our brave officers are risking their lives every day to keep American communities safe by arresting and removing illegal aliens from our streets,” DHS said. “Continued efforts to encourage illegal aliens and violent agitators to actively resist ICE will only lead to more violent incidents, the extremist rhetoric must stop.”
The incident has triggered at least three investigations. The Anne Arundel County Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division will review the shooting, while the FBI will investigate the alleged assault on federal agents.
ICE agents opened fire on a van in Maryland after DHS says the driver attempted to ram officers during a Christmas Eve enforcement operation, leaving two injured and prompting multiple investigations.
ICE will also conduct an internal investigation through its Office of Professional Responsibility.
Anne Arundel County Police Chief Amal Awad said the multiple investigations are standard procedure in incidents involving federal and local agencies and emphasized that her department was not involved in the shooting.
“No Anne Arundel resources were involved in this incident, nor were they present,” she said.
No further details were immediately available as the investigations continue.
