A man shot and wounded by a Border Patrol agent during an immigration stop in Portland, Oregon, last week has pleaded not guilty to aggravated assault on a federal employee and damaging federal property.
Luis David Nino-Moncada, through his public defender, entered the plea during a hearing in U.S. District Court. Indicted last Tuesday, Nino-Moncada remains in custody with a release hearing scheduled for next week, as U.S. Magistrate Judge Stacie Beckerman set a five-day jury trial for March.
The shooting occurred just a day after a different federal agent shot and killed a driver in Minneapolis, leading to protests concerning federal agents' aggressive tactics during immigration enforcement operations.
The FBI reported in court filings that no surveillance or other video evidence of the shooting was found, in which Nino-Moncada and his passenger, Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras, were shot while in a pickup truck parked at a medical complex. The Department of Homeland Security indicated both individuals had entered the U.S. illegally and were connected with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
Portland Police Chief Bob Day confirmed that Nino-Moncada and Zambrano-Contreras had “some nexus” to the gang and came under police scrutiny during an investigation of a prior July shooting that was attributed to gang members.
Zambrano-Contreras, who is currently held in a private immigration detention facility in Tacoma, Washington, also faces a charge of illegal entry into the U.S., filed by federal prosecutors in Texas last week. The public defender's office in Texas has not commented on the matter.
According to Border Patrol agents' statements, the shooting happened after Nino-Moncada allegedly put the truck into reverse, repeatedly slamming it into a rental car occupied by the agents, causing damage that included smashed headlights and a knocked-off bumper. An FBI Special Agent's affidavit noted that agents feared for their safety and that of the public, leading to the use of force.
