The socialist coalition that helped put Zohran Mamdani in City Hall is turning on its own mayor after an ICE arrest operation ended in gunfire. The Democratic Socialists of America demanded that Mamdani fire NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and take action against federal immigration enforcement in New York City. The confrontation involved Oscar Belgal, a 28-year-old illegal alien whom federal authorities identified as an alleged gang associate with a criminal record. Mamdani has so far refused to remove Tisch.
The shooting occurred Thursday in Marble Hill, a Manhattan neighborhood geographically connected to the Bronx, as ICE agents attempted to arrest Belgal during a targeted enforcement operation. Federal officials said Belgal refused orders to leave his vehicle, struck two government vehicles and then accelerated toward officers. At least one ICE agent fired seven rounds, striking Belgal in the neck while a 5-year-old boy authorities believed to be his son was sitting in the back seat. The child was not physically injured, and Belgal survived before being placed in federal custody.
The Department of Homeland Security identified Belgal as a Dominican national who was in the United States illegally and had alleged ties to the Trinitarios street gang. DHS said his record included multiple arrests involving assault, robbery, drugs and weapons, while Tisch confirmed two prior arrests in New York City. Belgal pleaded guilty to fourth-degree grand larceny following a 2023 robbery arrest, received five years’ probation and was arrested again in 2025 for allegedly selling controlled substances in a case that remained pending. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said ICE agents had attempted to apprehend Belgal in September, but he fled.
The DSA responded by directing its anger at Tisch and the city police department rather than Belgal. As the New York Post reported, the organization called on Mamdani to fire the commissioner and “use every power available to him to drive ICE out of New York City.” The socialists also demanded that the city eliminate the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group and Community Response Team. DSA activists accused city officers of assisting ICE and mistreating demonstrators who gathered after the shooting.
Darializa Avila Chevalier, a DSA-backed congressional candidate, separately called for Tisch to resign and accused the commissioner of protecting armed ICE agents. During an interview with far-left streamer Hasan Piker, Chevalier dismissed questions about Belgal’s criminal history by saying it “doesn’t even matter.” Tisch had discussed Belgal’s 2023 robbery arrest, resulting grand larceny conviction and pending drug case during a press briefing following the shooting, while federal authorities separately alleged that he had gang ties. The commissioner also made clear that city police officers didn’t participate in the federal arrest operation.
NYPD officers arrived only after the shooting, when members of a nearby precinct team heard reports of shots fired and responded to the scene. Mamdani said the Strategic Response Group targeted by the DSA wasn’t involved in the shooting or the police response. Activists instead focused on officers clearing a path for federal vehicles as demonstrators confronted ICE personnel near the hospital. Former NYPD Deputy Commissioner Richard Esposito told the Post that clearing a roadway so federal officers could leave a volatile scene was standard police procedure.
Watch Mamdani respond to the shooting and call for ICE a danger below:
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Mamdani addressed the growing split during a Sunday appearance on MS Now, where he was asked about Chevalier’s demand that Tisch step down. He said he and the commissioner would examine the shooting, the department’s response and the protests that followed. Mamdani also maintained his plan to dismantle the Strategic Response Group even though he acknowledged that the unit played no part in the incident. His administration said it would review every action the city could take in response to ICE activity.
The mayor said his administration would examine ICE’s use of privately owned parking lots and the conduct of city officers during the aftermath. He spent roughly two hours speaking with President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin while seeking Belgal’s release, but the federal government retained custody of the wounded suspect. Despite the DSA’s ultimatum and demands from Chevalier, Mamdani has kept the commissioner who briefed the public on Belgal’s New York City criminal record. Mamdani told The New York Times that “there are no plans to change NYPD leadership.”
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video.