A 21-year-old Dominican illegal migrant is in custody after allegedly shooting an off-duty U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer during an attempted robbery in Fort Washington Park, Manhattan, late Saturday night.
Police say the suspect approached the agent and a woman near the Hudson River just before midnight and opened fire, hitting the officer in the face and arm. The officer returned fire, hitting the suspect three times.
Security footage shows two men arriving on a scooter. One confronted the pair while the other waited. After the shooting, the suspect fled but later showed up at a Bronx hospital with gunshot wounds. He was arrested there.
The suspect crossed the border illegally in April 2023 and was let go because detention centers were full. A deportation order followed, but he remained in the U.S. He has since been arrested several times in New York and Massachusetts on charges including armed robbery and assault. Each arrest ended in release under bail reform and sanctuary laws.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch confirmed the injuries matched surveillance evidence and said the officer drew his weapon in self-defense after the suspect fired first.
The officer is in stable condition at Harlem Hospital after surgery. Mayor Eric Adams visited him and called for stronger federal support to target violent offenders.
Federal charges are expected. A second suspect, believed to be the getaway driver, has also been arrested. Investigators are looking into a possible earlier robbery linked to the same suspects.
