Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blamed New York City officials and "sanctuary city policies" for the shooting of an off-duty US Customs and Border Protection officer in an apparent robbery gone wrong over the weekend. The 42-year-old officer is in stable condition and expected to survive, officials said Monday. There is no indication he was targeted because of his employment, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Sunday. The officer, who was not in uniform, was sitting with a woman in Riverside Park, beneath the George Washington Bridge, when two men approached on a moped before midnight Sunday. One of the men approached the officer, who realized he was being robbed and drew his service weapon, Tisch said. They both fired their weapons, and the officer was shot in the face and arm, officials said Sunday. The perpetrator was wounded before he got back on the moped and drove away, police said. Surveillance footageposted on Xby DHS appears to show the two suspects arriving at a New York City hospital early Sunday, riding what the department said was "the same moped that was driven at the scene of the crime." The front-seat passenger, wearing a white top, appears injured and slips off the moped. He is seen lying on the ground as the other man rides away. "One of the suspects DUMPS the body of his injured counterpart and flees," the DHS post reads. "These individuals will face the full weight of the U.S. Justice System," it added. Authorities identified Miguel Mora, a 21-year-old undocumented immigrant with an extensive criminal past, as a person of interest. He arrived at a Bronx hospital with gunshot wounds to the groin and leg, and was taken into custody, according to Tisch. After the attack, the New York City Police Department asked hospitals in the area to be on the lookout for patients with gunshot wounds, which led them to Mora, according to senior law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation. After a search, Mora's alleged accomplice, who is also undocumented, was arrested Monday, Noemsaid. Cristian Aybar Berroa also has a history of criminal activity, she said. It is unclear whether Mora or Berroa have attorneys. Federal charges against both men are expected, officials said. Mora entered the country illegally through Arizona in 2023, officials said. Berroa illegally entered the country on June 19, 2022, a Monday release from the Department of Homeland Securitysaid. Mora's criminal history includes charges for assault on a pregnant woman and a stabbing charge in January, two senior law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation told CNN. Mora was wanted for robbing a pawn shop in Massachusetts where guns were stolen, and authorities are looking into whether the semi-automatic weapon used in the attack over the weekend is from the pawn shop, the officials said. Berroa's criminal history includes charges of reckless endangerment and felony grand larceny stemming from incidents in 2023 and 2024. After being arrested in April of last year, he was released "despite an active ICE detainer," the releasesaid. In June of this year, Berroa pleaded guilty to petit larceny at the Bronx County Supreme Court, the releaseadded. "This plea was made in consolidation of all his previous arrests, and he was conditionally discharged and allowed to roam the streets of NYC," the release said. Noem blamed "sanctuary city policies" for the shooting, citing a list of previous arrests and warrants against Mora. "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," she said. Noem called on leaders of sanctuary cities nationwide to change their policies. When asked what policies would have prevented the shooting, Noem did not provide specifics. "This individual should have been deported and never been in this country," she said. President Donald Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, echoed Noem's statements. "Sanctuary cities are sanctuaries for criminals," Homan said Monday. "Full stop." A spokesperson for New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said the governor wishes the injured officer a full recovery. "She believes those responsible for this heinous crime must be held fully accountable and deported," spokesperson Jess D'Amelia told CNN in an email Monday. "New York already works with the federal government to remove violent criminals — and will continue to do so," D'Amelia added. "But indiscriminately targeting families, students, and small business owners doesn't make anyone safer. It's time for the Trump Administration to put their full focus on removing criminals, just as the President promised." At a separate news conference Monday, New York Mayor Eric Adams said he is not responsible for the "revolving-door criminal justice system" that kept Mora on the streets. "I just carry out the rules," Adams said. Adams said he would welcome more federal agents being deployed to his city, as long as they are focused on dangerous individuals and not "everyday individuals who are trying to complete the path to be a citizen." The mayor previously said he visited the wounded officer Sunday in the hospital, where he was recovering with family members by his side who thanked the city for its response. "I am extremely angry that we have a customs border patrol officer that is in the hospital because that person should have not been on our streets," Adams said Monday. The officer suffered a broken jaw and a bullet is lodged in his throat, but he is alert and has been communicating through hand gestures, senior law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation told CNN. In a social media post Sunday afternoon, Trump said the shooting was 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 said. Federal officials have warned of attacks on agents involved in immigration enforcement, with many agents choosing to cover their faces with masks – a move that hasdrawn scrutinyfrom members of the public and law enforcement experts. "If that's a tool that the men and women of ICE (use) that keeps themselves and their families safe, then I will allow it," the acting director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Todd Lyons said Sunday. CNN's Martin Goillandeau and Karina Tsui contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account atCNN.com
