A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent was forced to open fire at a fleeing suspect who hit the agent with their vehicle Monday morning in Manahawkin, New Jersey.Stafford Township police said the incident began around 9:30 a.m. Monday on Route 72 near Mermaid Drive in Manahawkin.ICE agents were trying to take a suspect into custody when the suspect took off in a vehicle, police said. The suspect’s vehicle struck an ICE agent as they fled.
The agent fired his weapon at the vehicle, potentially hitting it. The suspect was able to continue running and has not been located.
There are no further concerns for public safety, according to Stafford Township Police.
Stafford Township police said in a brief news release that they were neither assisting nor involved in the ICE operation. They also say they are not conducting the investigation.
Local police are controlling traffic and securing the crime scene, the release said.
The public has been asked to stay away from the area as the investigation continues.
The agent suffered unknown injuries. It is unknown if the suspect was injured in the incident.
This comes as President Donald Trump scored a significant legislative victory after the U.S. Senate approved a massive $70 billion border security and immigration enforcement funding package last week.
The legislation was passed by a 52-47 vote, with nearly every Republican senator supporting the measure.
The only Republican to vote against the bill was Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who joined Democrats in opposition.
The package would provide a historic increase in resources for immigration enforcement agencies that have been at the center of the administration’s efforts to secure the border, expand deportation operations, and crack down on illegal immigration.
The bill includes approximately $38.6 billion for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, making it one of the largest funding increases in the agency’s history.
An additional $22.6 billion would go toward U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which oversees Border Patrol operations and manages security along America’s borders.
The package also allocates roughly $5 billion for the Department of Homeland Security to support broader agency operations and implementation of administration priorities.
Republicans argued throughout the debate that the funding is necessary to maintain border security gains achieved under Trump’s policies and to provide federal agencies with the resources needed to carry out their missions.
Supporters say the funding would help expand detention capacity, hire additional personnel, strengthen enforcement operations, improve infrastructure, and continue large-scale deportation efforts already underway.
The legislation advanced after an intense overnight session in which Senate Democrats attempted to reshape the bill through a series of amendments.
Republicans largely rejected those efforts, arguing that the legislation was specifically designed to address immigration enforcement and border security rather than serve as a broader domestic policy package.
Democrats have repeatedly described the program as a political slush fund and attempted to eliminate it through legislative action. There’s no truth to that claim.
However, those efforts failed during consideration of the border security package.
Earlier this week, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche testified before Congress that the fund has not yet been implemented.
Blanche said no commissioners have been appointed, no claims processed, and no operational structure established.
Despite Democratic objections, Republicans declined to prohibit the program permanently as part of the funding legislation.
Republicans have consistently emphasized border security, deportations, and immigration enforcement as core priorities throughout Trump’s second term.