Trump Admin Denounces Sanctuary Cities After Shooting Of Border Patrol Officer

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Czar Tom Homan on Monday called for changes to sanctuary city policies following the shooting of a Customs and Border Protection officer in New York City on Saturday.

Late Saturday evening, the 42-year-old officer and his friend were sitting in Fort Washington Park in Manhattan when two men approached them on a moped. One man walked up to the officer and shot him multiple times in the face and arm. The officer’s friend was uninjured. The officer shot back, injuring the perpetrator in the leg and groin area, causing him and his accomplice to drive off.

Noem and Homan condemned New York City’s sanctuary city policies during Monday’s press conference, saying they made this kind of crime possible by allowing criminals to remain in the country. Noem said she was “calling on every single mayor in a sanctuary city and sanctuary city governor to change their policies and to change their tactics right now.”

Homan confirmed her sentiment, saying that “Sanctuary cities are sanctuaries for criminals.” Homan also reaffirmed the Trump administration’s policy to target sanctuary cities for illegal aliens, which has led to the arrest of thousands in cities like Los Angeles.

President Donald Trump wrote in a post Sunday following the incident that “The Democrats have flooded our Nation with Criminal Invaders, and now, they must all be thrown out.”

“We should not be here today. The reason these two assailants are inside the United States today is because of failed border policies by the Biden administration,” CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott said at a press conference Monday.

Noem said that the officer and his friend “were attacked by two individuals that were set on robbing them and, thankfully, he had his service weapon with him and was able to defend himself and his friend.” She added that “His quick action speaks to his tenacity and his excellence in training.”

Noem and Homan recently visited the injured officer, who is in a stable condition.

The suspect, Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez, a citizen of the Dominican Republic, was taken into custody after he limped into a New York City hospital with wounds similar to those inflicted by the officer late Saturday night. The second suspect, Christhian Aybar-Berroa — also a citizen of the Dominican Republic — was taken into custody Monday morning, Noem announced.

Nunez’s criminal record lists grand larceny, assault, criminal contempt, and armed robbery with a firearm, all of which occurred between October 2023 and February 2025. Aybar-Berroa’s record includes reckless endangerment, grand larceny, and reckless driving.

Noem wrote in a post Monday that the second suspect, Aybar-Berroa, “entered the country illegally in 2022 under the Biden Administration and was ordered for final removed [sic] in 2023 by an immigration judge. He has a criminal record in New York City and detainers were IGNORED thanks to @ericadamsfornyc sanctuary city policies.”