Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield on the Border Patrol shooting in Portland
Dan RayfieldOregon Attorney General
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said he was deeply troubled by reports that two people were shot and injured in Portland during an incident involving federal agents. He said his office had been clear about its concerns over excessive use of force by federal agents in Portland, that the incident heightened the need for transparency and accountability, and that his office would take appropriate action as more facts came to light.
“We are deeply troubled by reports that two people were shot and injured in Portland today during an incident involving federal agents. We have been clear about our concerns with the excessive use of force by federal agents in Portland, and today’s incident only heightens the need for transparency and accountability. Oregonians deserve clear answers when people are injured in their neighborhoods. Our office is closely monitoring this situation and will take appropriate action to protect the rights and safety of Oregonians as more facts come to light.”
Official statement
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Was a Border Patrol agent justified in shooting Luis David Niño-Moncada and Yorlenys Zambrano-Contreras in Portland?
On January 8, 2026, at about 2:15 p.m., a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent shot and wounded Luis David Niño-Moncada and Yorlenys Zambrano-Contreras, both Venezuelan nationals, in the parking lot of an Adventist Health clinic in Portland, Oregon's Hazelwood neighborhood, during a vehicle stop conducted by a team of Border Patrol agents. DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the agent fired in self-defense after the driver, Niño-Moncada, 'weaponized his vehicle and attempted to run over the law enforcement agents'; agents said he repeatedly reversed and drove his truck into an unoccupied rental vehicle used by the agents. Initial reporting described the pair as unarmed. DHS also alleged the two had ties to the Tren de Aragua gang and, in Zambrano-Contreras's case, a prostitution ring; Portland Police Chief Bob Day said the gang information did not draw a 'throughline' to the shooting itself. The FBI opened an investigation and initially reported finding no video of the shooting; Oregon's Department of Justice separately opened an investigation. The shooting prompted protests in Portland, including at least six arrests. Niño-Moncada was charged with aggravated assault of a federal officer and damaging federal property; Zambrano-Contreras was charged with improper entry by an alien and pleaded guilty within days, receiving probation. In February 2026, a nearby treatment center released surveillance video that offered a partial view of the incident. In July 2026, federal prosecutors disclaimed the gang-membership allegation and dropped the assault charge, and Niño-Moncada pleaded guilty to the lesser property-damage charge; he was sentenced in September 2026 to time served and ordered deported. Court filings unsealed in September 2026 also disclosed that a Portland police officer's body camera captured a Border Patrol agent attempting to remove an unfired bullet from the scene before being stopped.
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
News release from the Oregon Department of Justice, issued by Attorney General Dan Rayfield on January 8, 2026.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting
About this source
KATU report published the evening of January 8, 2026 on the Oregon Department of Justice's decision to investigate the shooting.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Rayfield's office released the statement on January 8, 2026 (Pacific time), the day a federal officer shot and wounded two people in Portland. The Department of Homeland Security said the driver tried to use the vehicle to run the agents over and that an agent opened fire.
After the quotation
Later that evening Rayfield said the Oregon Department of Justice would investigate the shooting. KATU reported that the investigation would look at whether the federal officers acted outside their lawful authority, and that any criminal wrongdoing it found could be referred to the Multnomah County district attorney, his office said.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case asks whether the Border Patrol agent was justified in shooting the two people. Rayfield said he was deeply troubled by reports of the shooting, pointed to his office's earlier concerns about excessive use of force by federal agents in Portland, and said the incident heightened the need for transparency and accountability. He did not say what the facts would show about this shooting, but he tied it to those concerns and did not defend the agents' conduct, so we used the label Condemned.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More from this case
Read the full caseU.S. Attorney's Office for Oregon says an officer fired only after the truck hit a government car twice
U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon
“As part of his plea agreement, Nino-Moncada admitted that his conduct placed others at risk of serious bodily injury and that he was conscious of or recklessly disregarded that risk. It was only after defendant struck the government car twice, within just a few feet of the officers’ positions, and with one officer in the path of the truck, that a government officer fired two shots at defendant.”Read statement
Rep. Alek Skarlatos on officials' reaction to the Border Patrol shooting in Portland
“These are elected leaders statewide. These aren't just random people that are giving these press conferences They are raising the temperature at the worst possible time after what happened in Minneapolis. It should be more of a reason for them to take pause and let the facts come out instead of just jumping on the bandwagon of throwing law enforcement under the bus.”Read statement
Rep. Lucetta Elmer on officials' reaction to the Border Patrol shooting in Portland
“What Oregonians saw over the last 72 hours was not restraint. They saw immediate conclusions, inflammatory rhetoric and public statements made before all the facts were known”Read statement
Cite this record
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- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield on the Border Patrol shooting in Portland
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- https://disputeindex.com/events/3438-oregon-attorney-general-dan-rayfield-said-he-was
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield on the Border Patrol shooting in Portland". First published: 2026-09-30. Last updated: 2026-09-30. https://disputeindex.com/events/3438-oregon-attorney-general-dan-rayfield-said-he-was