A man shot by U.S. immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Northern California is not a gang member wanted for murder in El Salvador as the government says, the man's attorney said Wednesday.

Carlos Iván Mendoza Hernández, 36, a Salvadoran national, was shot Tuesday morning while attempting to evade capture during a targeted immigration enforcement operation in Patterson, a Stanislaus County suburb.

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said on X that morning that Hernández was an "18th Street gang member wanted in El Salvador for questioning in connection to a murder."

But at a news conference Wednesday morning, Hernández lawyer, Patrick Kolasinski disputed those claims.

"This morning we received a little bit of information from El Salvador," Kolasinski said, holding documents in hand. "He had a criminal encounter in El Salvador where he had been accused of murder and he was acquitted, so he cannot possibly have a warrant out for his arrest in El Salvador and that is a complete misstatement.

"We've spoken to his family in Salvador and here, and he was never been in a gang," he added.

Kolasinski said Hernández came to the U.S. in 2019 and believes his client is in the country without legal documentation. He described him as a family man who was on his way to work when he was captured.

Hernández's fiancee, Cindy, described her partner as a loving man and father to their 2-year-old daughter and said it's been difficult for her with him gone.

"My daughter is Carlos's love," she said.

His absence has disrupted the precious bedtime routine for their daughter, because Hernández is the one who bathes her and gets her ready for bed, said Cindy, who did not provide her full name out of safety concerns.

"It was over 9 p.m. and she was still waiting for him. She couldn't sleep," the fiancee said. "She was asking (for) daddy and looking around the room and she went to sleep around 1 a.m."

She told reporters that the hospital treating Hernández would tell her only that he was in stable condition, but would not provide any other details or let her speak with him.

Kolasinski said Hernández has no criminal history but was stopped and cited last week in Turlock, about 15 miles southeast of Patterson, for a cracked windshield. Hernández's fiancee said a vehicle was also spotted outside their home days later.

"We believe that may have led this encounter with ICE," Kolasinski said, suggesting someone may have tipped off federal immigration agents. "ICE got bad information and acted on it in line with bad training."

Hernández was detained by federal immigration agents about 6:15 a.m. in the area of Sperry Avenue and Interstate 5, according to Kolasinski and federal authorities.

The Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office said on a Facebook post that dispatchers received a report around 6:30 a.m. from ICE officers about an officer-involved shooting in that same area. The department said deputies responded to help secure the area by blocking roadways. Fire officials and paramedics also responded to provide medical assistance.

Lyons wrote on X that "as officers approached the car, the wanted gang member weaponized his vehicle in an attempt to run an officer over. Following their training, our officers fired defensive shots to protect themselves, their fellow agents and the public."

A video obtained by KCRA 3 shows officers surrounding a black hatchback that is boxed between two unmarked vehicles on Del Puerto Canyon Road just west of Rodgers Road.

The video shows the driver going in reverse with the front passenger door open and striking a pickup truck, prompting officers to draw their weapons. The car then goes forward, apparently in an attempt to make a U-turn, narrowly missing two officers, who open fire on the vehicle.

An aerial view from the station's helicopter showed several bullet holes in the vehicle's windshield.

Kolasinski denied that Hernández was trying to run over the officers.

"He is doing everything he can to not run them over as they try their best to get in his way," he said. "If you look at that video and watch that video side by side with the Renee Good video, it's the same training, and it's horrible training.

"The California Highway Patrol does dangerous stops day in and day out," he added. "They don't have this kind of issue."

The shooting is being investigated by the FBI.

Kolasinski believes his client is being held by federal agents investigating the shooting and not under federal immigration custody.

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security referred The Times to Lyons' statement on X on Wednesday and did not respond to questions about whether El Salvador had requested the apprehension of Hernández.

The incident marks the sixth shooting to involve federal immigration agents in California since August 2025, and it's the second shooting to occur this year.

In January, the Department of Homeland Security said an agent opened fire on a man in a car after he tried to ram his vehicle into federal law enforcement while evading arrest during an immigration operation in Willowbrook.

The incident occurred three days before Border Patrol agents shot and killed 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minnesota. Both shootings happened a little more than two weeks after an ICE agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renée Good.

The killings have sparked congressional hearings , a partial government shutdown over Homeland Security funding and nationwide protests against the Trump administration.

The Department of Homeland Security maintains that there has been an increase in violence against federal immigration agents and officers. In February, the agency claimed there have been 180 vehicle attacks against agents since President Trump took office.

The agency claimed that from Jan. 21, 2025, to Jan. 24, 2026, ICE agents experienced 68 vehicular attacks against them, compared with only two during the same period the previous year.

Although there have been incidents of violence against agents, including the shooting death of Border Patrol Agent David Maland in northern Vermont, controversial shootings and an unprecedented loss of federal court cases against suspects have raised credibility concerns about the agency.

In August 2025, Border Patrol agents opened fire on Francisco Longoria, his 18-year-old son and 23-year-old son-in-law after breaking the driver's side window of his truck, prompting him to drive off.

At the time, Homeland Security officials accused Longoria of driving toward agents and injuring them; surveillance video captured from across the street appeared to show that to be untrue. The agency arrested Longoria and charged him with assault on a federal officer. The agency later dropped the charges.

In October, ICE officers opened fire twice in two separate incidents: one in South L.A and the other in Ontario. In the first shooting, Homeland Security officials accused a man of weaponizing his car and ramming a law enforcement vehicle in an attempt to flee.

But body-cam video raised questions about the moments leading up to the shooting. The man's car also did not appear to be moving. A federal judge dismissed the charges against the man.

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