Additional Coverage:
An off-duty Border Patrol agent is recovering after a late-night robbery attempt turned into a shootout in Riverside Park. The incident occurred around 11:53 p.m. Saturday when the agent and a friend were approached by two individuals on a scooter.
According to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, one of the scooter’s occupants, identified as 21-year-old Miguel Mora, approached the agent and brandished a firearm. The agent, realizing he was being robbed, drew his own service weapon.
Shots were exchanged, with the agent being struck in the face and forearm, and Mora sustaining wounds to the groin and leg. Both were hospitalized and are expected to survive.
Mora, currently in custody at Lincoln Hospital, has a significant criminal history. Police say he illegally entered the U.S. from Mexico in 2023 and has prior arrests for domestic violence in New York, as well as active warrants for robbery and felony assault. He is also wanted in Massachusetts for a firearms robbery.
The second suspect, who allegedly drove the scooter, remains at large. The firearm used in the shooting has not yet been recovered.
Mayor Eric Adams condemned the violence and pledged to hold Mora accountable. Authorities do not believe the Border Patrol agent was targeted because of his profession.