Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr. and Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel on Tuesday announced the indictments of two Dominican Republican nationals on state charges in connection with the July 19 shooting of an off-duty U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer in Fort Washington Park, Manhattan.
The men, Mora Nunez, 21, and Christhian Aybar‑Berroa, 22, are considered undocumented immigrants who are liable for deportation, reports the Department of Justice.
Nunez is facing charges of attempted murder in the first and second degrees, along with multiple counts of assault in the first degree, attempted robbery, robbery in the first and second degrees, and criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree.
Aybar‑Berroa, meanwhile, is facing state assault and robbery charges as well as weapon possession counts.
They both face federal charges as well, including Nunez with unauthorized ammunition possession and Aybar-Berroa with accessory after the fact.
According to officials, the shootings occurred at just before midnight on July 19. The suspects, who were riding a moped in Fort Washington Park under the George Washington Bridge, had allegedly robbed a woman minutes before approaching the off-duty CBP officer and his female companion seated along the Hudson River.
Nunez allegedly opened fire, hitting the CBP officer in the face and right arm. The officer returned shots, injuring Nunez in the leg and groin, before the suspects fled the scene
Aybar‑Berroa is believed to have driven Nunez to a Bronx hospital, and later allegedly attempted to discard bloody clothing linked to the shooting.
Nunez reportedly had entered the United States through Arizona in April 2023, with Aybar-Berroa coming in through Texas in 2022 and having been under a removal order since January 2023.
The New York Post reports that Aybar-Berroa had been arrested at least eight times before in New York City, mostly in connection with scooter robberies, but had not been jailed because of the city's bail reform provisions and non–bail‑eligible charges.
Nunez, meanwhile, had been slated for deportation in November 2024. He also had been arrested several times, on charges of assault, grand larceny, kidnapping. He also was under an active Massachusetts warrant for armed robbery.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.