ICE agents wrongfully detain 19-year-old in New York’s Bronx, leave him bleeding after realising mistake | Watch
A 19-year-old in New York's Bronx said that he was wrongfully detained by ICE agents on Wednesday and was left bleeding in a park, after agents realised mistake. The incident comes as ICE continues crackdown on immigrants in the US
A 19-year-old in the Bronx, New York, was left bleeding and requiring stitches following an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation that mistakenly targeted him, NBC News reported Friday (local time).
The incident occurred on Wednesday afternoon at Gun Hill Road and Hull Avenue. Cellphone footage showed ICE agents tackling and detaining the teen. The report added that once the agents realised they had made a mistake, they dropped him off at a park, bloody and bruised.
Jeury Concepcion, the victim, told NBC New York that he was also suffering from a concussion as a result of his encounter with federal immigration agents. Multiple videos obtained by News 4 captured the incident. One clip shows a federal agent sprinting toward Concepcion with a gun drawn while he stood outside a barber shop on Hull Avenue.
19-year-old mistakenly tackled by ICE: Here's what happened
The teen reported that he was stopped by several ICE agents who asked him to stop and later brought him to the ground and handcuffed him.
Footage from the incident also showed ICE agents lifting the 19-year-old off the ground as he bled. The agents then walked Concepcion away, pressing him up against a car, after which they eventually put him in the vehicle and left.
During the ride, the 19-year-old was asked for his ID and cellphone, following which the federal agents realised their mistake. Speaking to NBC New York, Concepcion said, "He told me he’s sorry, that he [was] confusing me with somebody else and that it would never happen again, and that he don’t want me to think they did it," and added, "And I told him I’m going to report them."
The teen added that later, the agents dropped him off at a park he was not familiar with; however, he eventually reunited with his mother.
The incident occurred amid threats by Border Czar Tom Homan to deploy more immigration agents across New York City, as state lawmakers consider legislation supported by Governor Kathy Hochul that would restrict local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement operations.
ICE agents continue crackdown
This is not the first time ICE agents have tackled an individual in the US. Ever since US President Donald Trump returned to the White House for a second term in 2025, his administration has ramped up efforts to deport illegal immigrants and launched an overall crackdown targeting immigrants in the country.
Earlier in January, several ICE agents detained at least four children, including a five-year-old, from a Minneapolis-area school district. The five-year-old boy, Liam Conejo Ramos, and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, were detained and held for more than a week at a facility in Dilley, Texas, after being taken into custody outside their home in suburban Minneapolis.
In a separate incident in March, California Democrats slammed ICE after a viral video showed agents using "excessive force" while detaining two people at San Francisco International Airport. The viral footage showed a woman crying and collapsing to the ground as officers took her into custody, with her daughter crying nearby.
ICE has also come under heavy criticism following a January 22 incident in Minneapolis in which a two-year-old child, identified as C.R.T.V., was taken into federal custody along with her father, Elvis Tipan-Echeverria, after agents approached their vehicle.
The family alleged that officers entered their backyard and driveway without a warrant, shattered a window while the child was inside, and refused to allow the father to hand the toddler over to her mother. They also claimed the ICE vehicle lacked a child safety seat. Although a court ordered the child’s release, she was flown to Texas before eventually being reunited with her mother.
The latest incident in the Bronx adds to growing scrutiny of ICE operations under the Trump administration, as multiple cases involving the detention of children and allegations of excessive force continue to draw criticism from families, activists, and local officials across the country.
- The incident underscores the escalating scrutiny of ICE operations and their impact on immigrant communities.
- The use of excessive force by federal agents raises serious concerns about their training and accountability.
- Victims of wrongful detentions are increasingly speaking out, highlighting the need for reform within immigration enforcement.
About the Author
Swati Gandhi is a digital journalist with over four years of experience, specialising in international and geopolitical issues. Her work focuses on foreign policy, global power shifts, and the political and economic forces shaping international relations, with a particular emphasis on how global developments affect India. She approaches journalism with a strong belief in context-driven reporting, aiming to break down complex global events into clear, accessible narratives for a wide readership.<br><br> Previously, Swati has worked at Business Standard, where she covered a range of beats including national affairs, politics, and business. This diverse newsroom experience helped her build a strong grounding in reporting, while also strengthening her ability to work across both breaking news and in-depth explanatory stories. Covering multiple beats early in her career has helped her be informed about her current work, allowing her to connect domestic developments with wider international trends.<br><br> At Live Mint, she focuses on international and geopolitical issues through a business and economic lens, examining how global political developments, foreign policy decisions, and power shifts impact markets, industries, and India’s strategic and economic interests.<br><br> She holds a Bachelor’s degree in English (Honours) from the University of Delhi and a Master’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University. Her academic training has shaped her emphasis on precision, analytical rigour, and clarity in writing. Her interests include global political economy and the intersection of geopolitics with business.<br><br> Outside work, Swati focuses on exploring her passion and love for food. From fancy cafes to street spots, Swati explores food like a true foodie.
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