An off-duty U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer was shot in the face after being robbed by a moped-riding illegal immigrant in a New York City park on Saturday — but he shot back and wounded his attacker, according to sources.
The suspect has been identified as Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez, a 21-year-old Dominican national with a lengthy rap sheet in New York according to sources — but he was let go each time he was busted, despite having a deportation order.
Mora entered the US illegally via the southern border under the Biden admin, the Department of Homeland Security said Sunday.
The 42-year-old federal agent and a female companion were sitting on a rock along the Hudson River in Fort Washington Park in Manhattan when they were ambushed by the two men on a moped around 11:50 p.m., according to police sources.
After a brief exchange and tussle, one of the moped-riding men fired a gun and hit the victim in the face and left forearm.
The agent then drew his own pistol and fired multiple shots at the perps, hitting the suspect.
Mora was struck and wounded three times by the return gunfire, sources said.
Harrowing video released by DHS caught one suspect hopping off the moped and approaching the CBP officer before firing shots at him — then reeling back after the officer returned fire. The suspects eventually fled on the moped, the video showed.
President Trump unleashed on the system that allowed Mora to enter the country illegally and stay here.
“Last night, in New York City, an incredible CBP Officer was shot in the face by an Illegal Alien Monster freed into the Country under Joe Biden. He was apprehended at the Border in April 2023 but, instead of being deported, was RELEASED. The CBP Officer bravely fought off his attacker, despite his wounds, demonstrating enormous Skill and Courage,” President Trump wrote in a Truth Social Post.
Mayor Eric Adams addressed the mounting criticism during a visit to the wounded victim officer in Harlem Hospital on Sunday.
“Our goal is to get dangerous people off the streets. And we have done that with our federal partners. You know of the number of dangerous gang take downs we’ve participated in. Whatever we need to do in our federal laws to ensure that dangerous people are not on our streets, federal authorities need to do that,” the Hizzoner said.
“We’re not allowed to coordinate with deportation, civil deportation only. But we have used the tools with our task force and our federal partners to remove dangerous people off the streets. I have communicated with our borders czar and he is in route to visit our officer,” he said.
Sources said Mora crossed the U.S.-Mexico border in April 2023. He was released due to a lack of space at a border detention facility with a notice to later appear in front of a judge when he was caught crossing.
An immigration judge issued a removal order in 2023, sources said.
The alleged robber is currently in custody after walking into a Bronx hospital with gunshot wounds.
Cops were able to save the CBP officer’s life because they were nearby — responding to a mugging in the area, where the same suspects are believed to have stolen a woman’s cellphone just five minutes before the shootout, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said Sunday.
The federal agent was undergoing surgery Sunday, sources said. He is in stable condition, according to the DHS.
The second robber is still at large.
At the time of his arrest for the shooting, Mora was wanted on kidnapping and weapons charges out of Massachusetts related to a robbery at a pawn shop, sources said.
He also had at least four arrests in New York City — where he was let go without bail each time, according to the sources.
Mora was nabbed twice just days apart August 2024 for allegedly assaulting a pregnant woman and threatening to kill another migrant with a machete.
Then he was arrested for violating an order of protection in November 2024, and had another bench warrant out for his arrest issued in January, sources said.
None of those charges were bail eligible, and New York City’s sanctuary laws mean that he was not handed over to ICE, despite a deportation order.
“With all these laws and policies, we still missing the guy that matters. They’re still missing the criminals,” one law enforcement source said. “This is failure at every level.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is expected to visit the wounded officer on Monday.
The two suspects will also be investigated for the robbery of the woman’s cellphone, authorities said.
— Additional reporting by Larry Celona
