Three witnesses present in the van with Lorenzo Salgado Araujo told the Washington Post that a federal officer fired at them almost immediately after exiting his vehicle and that gunfire came from the side, not from directly in front. This contradicts the DHS account that the van rammed officers. While multiple news outlets confirm federal authorities were investigating a different person at the time, the specific claim that agents "came in and started shooting from the sides" is disputed by official statements, even though the witnesses' account of the shooting direction is reported in detail by the Post. The core factual claim—what the three witnesses stated—comes from the Post report, but the broader dispute over the exact circumstances and whether agents faced a genuine threat remains contested between witnesses and federal officials.