Two shot by border agent in Portland have Tren de Aragua ties, DHS and police say
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — We're learning more about the two people shot Thursday by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent in Southeast Portland, with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Portland Police confirming the two had ties to the Tren de Aragua criminal group.
DHS identified the two people as as Luis David Nino-Moncada and Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras. Both were taken to the hospital after the shooting.
Nino-Moncada, who was shot in the arm, is out of the hospital and is now in FBI custody.
Zambrano-Contreras was shot in the chest. Portland Police Chief Bob Day said she remains in stable condition.
The shooting happened at about 2:20 p.m. Thursday outside the Adventist Health clinic near Southeast Main Street. Officials say Moncada was behind the wheel of the vehicle on Thursday when he was shot. Zambrano-Contreras was a passenger in the vehicle.
DHS said the duo "weaponized their vehicle against Border Patrol" and the agent fired at them in self-defense.
They drove more than 2.5 miles to Northeast 146th Avenue and East Burnside, where they were found and taken to the hospital.
KATU is working to obtain evidence that can explain what happened.
KATU is also digging into the alleged criminal records of the individuals involved.
DHS said he entered the country illegally and 2022 and since was arrested for driving under the influence and unauthorized use of a vehicle. A spokesperson said he also has a final order of removal, and is a suspected Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang member.
Court records show Nino-Moncada has an open DUII case in Washington County. The indictment — filed in early December — said he was caught driving under the influence of alcohol.
The passenger in yesterday's shooting — Yorlenys Zambrano-Contreras — is listed as a witness in grand jury proceedings. Nino-Moncada also has a number of speeding tickets in Multnomah County.
Court records show he also received a protective order against Zambrano-Contreras last November. He wrote that Zambrano-Contreras hit him with her car and told people she would kill him the next time she saw him. A judge approved the request in late November of last year, though court records indicate the two people were together after the order, and were together during yesterday's shooting.
DHS said Zambrano-Contreras entered illegally in 2023 and "played an active role in a Tren de Aragua prostitution ring." They said she was also involved in a prior shooting in Portland.
Publicly-available court records do not show a criminal record for her in Oregon. Multnomah County District Attorney Nathan Vasquez is investigating whether either person has open cases in Multnomah County.
PORTLAND POLICE INVESTIGATION
In a press conference Friday, Portland Police Chief Day said both Nino-Moncada and Zambrano-Contreras had some "nexus" of with TdA. Though he said he was hesitant to mention anything in the first place.
"I hesitated to even share this information initially because I'm very aware of the historic injustice of victim blaming oftentimes portrayed by law enforcement. Including this very agency that I've represented so proudly for so many years. And historically we have not been quick to disclose the potential criminal history of others. But I felt it was imperative because I was asked yesterday in the news conference what information we have. This is information we have," said Chief Day.
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The police chief was crying because he had to admit these were gang members and DHS was correct. Literally crying.
If you ever wonder about the type of people who rise to command in progressive cities, its they the type who cry over foreign Tren de Agua members.
A couple other things of note : These are the people the "ICE watch" is trying to protect.
Using vehicles as a weapon is common tactic..
One that Gov. DeSantis favors.
Directly from the article you seeded:
suspected Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang member.
For maga, suspicion is all that is required. They probably have tattoos, so regardless of what the tattoos are they are TdA.
Do,you think the police chief crying because dhs was correct is MAGA?
MAGA is pretty easy to identify. They irrationally rationalize just like you. It’s a sad example for the next generation who will have to clean up the maga disaster.
Is being a member of a gang a capital offense?
did you not read the story?
Are you not going to answer the question?
Dems in portland were outraged, claiming these two were a married “immigrant” couple, when in fact they were a gang banger pimp and his slutty whore. More democrat lies to push their agenda.