NEW YORK (AP/1010 WINS) — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blamed Mayor Eric Adams and City Council policies for the shooting of an off-duty U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer during a botched robbery in a Manhattan park over the weekend, saying Monday that city officials "refused" to keep the public safe and that both suspects, who are in the U.S. illegally, are now in custody.
"When I look at what Mayor Adams has done to New York City, it breaks my heart to see the families that have suffered because of his policies," Noem said at a press conference. "Make no mistake, this officer is in the hospital today fighting for his life because of the policies of the mayor of this city, and the City Council and the people that were in charge of keeping the public safe, they refused to do so and now we have this situation on our hand."
The comments were striking, as the Adams administration has been working closely with the Trump administration on immigration enforcement in the city. President Donald Trump even praised the mayor earlier this month, calling him a "very good person" and describing him as a "good independent running" in the mayoral race.
Noem, who visited the officer at the hospital, also announced that a second suspect had been apprehended in connection with the shooting of the 42-year-old officer at Riverside Park, beneath the George Washington Bridge.
The officer, who was not in uniform, had been sitting with a woman in the park when two men approached on a moped just before midnight Saturday night. The passenger got off and approached the officer, who realized he was being robbed and drew his service weapon.
The two exchanged gunfire and the off-duty officer was shot in the face and arm. The perpetrator was injured before he and the moped driver rode off, police said. The officer was hospitalized in stable condition.
A suspect, identified as Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez, a 21-year-old undocumented immigrant from the Dominican Republic with an extensive criminal past, was taken into custody after arriving at a Bronx hospital with gunshot wounds to the groin and leg.
"There's absolutely zero reason that someone who is scum of the earth like this should be running loose on the streets of New York City," Noem said of Nuez. "He was arrested four different times in New York City, and because of the mayor's policies and sanctuary city policies, was released back to do harm to people and to individuals living in this city."
The second suspect, Christhian Aybar-Berroa, was caught early Monday; officials said he is also from the Dominican Republic and entered the country illegally in 2022.
"He has a criminal record in New York City and detainers were IGNORED thanks to Adams sanctuary city policies," Noem wrote on X on Monday of Aybar-Berroa. "He was arrested for reckless endangerment and larceny and was released before ICE could get him off the streets."
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Sunday that Mora's injuries were consistent with what was seen on surveillance video of the shooting shared by the Department of Homeland Security.
Mora entered the country illegally through Arizona in 2023 and had two prior arrests for domestic violence in New York. He was wanted in New York to face accusations of robbery and felony assault, and in Massachusetts over a stolen weapons case, Tisch said.
The commissioner said there was no indication that the officer was targeted because of his employment.
In a social media post Sunday afternoon, Trump seized on the shooting as evidence of Democrats’ failures to secure the border.
“The CBP Officer bravely fought off his attacker, despite his wounds, demonstrating enormous Skill and Courage,” Trump added.
The shooting comes as federal officials warn of a surge of attacks on agents carrying out Trump’s mass deportation agenda. As enforcement efforts have ramped up in recent months, many officers have chosen to cover their faces with the goal of avoiding harassment in public and online.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.