Manhattan, New York — A 22-year-old Dominican national has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison after shooting and seriously injuring an off-duty Border Patrol officer during a robbery in Manhattan last summer.
Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez received the maximum allowable federal sentence Monday from U.S. District Court Judge Loretta Preska in a courtroom packed with Border Patrol agents.
Mora Nunez pleaded guilty earlier this year to a federal weapons charge related to his status as an unlawfully present immigrant. He still faces a separate attempted murder case in Manhattan, where prosecutors are seeking a significantly longer sentence if he is convicted.
Judge Says Sentence Should Send a Message
During Monday’s hearing, Preska said a lengthy sentence was necessary to discourage people from coming to the United States to commit crimes.
“There is an overwhelming need to send a message to people who come to the US to commit crimes,” Preska said before imposing the 15-year sentence.
Mora Nunez, who had crossed into the United States through the Arizona border in April 2023, became emotional in court as he apologized for the shooting.
Speaking in Spanish through an interpreter, he expressed regret and talked about his young daughter.
“I have been separated from my little girl who I love very much, I really wish to be with her and be a better role model,” he said. “I wish I could go back in time and avoid everything that has happened,” he added.
Officer Was Shot During Late-Night Robbery
The violent encounter happened shortly after midnight in Fort Washington Park along the Hudson River.
According to prosecutors, Mora Nunez approached Border Patrol officer Joshua Sinclair, who was off duty and sitting on a rock with a female companion.
Investigators said Mora Nunez had stolen another woman’s cellphone just minutes earlier. During the attempted robbery involving Sinclair, Mora Nunez shot the off-duty officer in the face.
Sinclair immediately returned fire, striking Mora Nunez twice, according to prosecutors. Mora Nunez then fled the area on a moped driven by another man, identified as 23-year-old Christhian Aybar-Berroa.
Accomplice Also Receives Prison Sentence
Aybar-Berroa was separately sentenced to 12 years and seven months in federal prison for his role in helping Mora Nunez escape after the shooting.
Both men were in the United States unlawfully and are expected to be deported after completing their federal sentences, according to the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office.
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Mora Nunez had previously accumulated a criminal record during his time in the United States, according to police sources cited in the original report. Those allegations included an arrest involving an alleged assault of a pregnant woman and another incident in which he was accused of threatening another migrant with a machete.
Judge Questions Whether Mora Nunez Has Changed
Preska acknowledged Mora Nunez’s desire to improve his life but said she remained concerned about whether he had developed greater respect for the law.
The judge pointed to prosecutors’ claims that Mora Nunez had allegedly bragged about his charges to other inmates while being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.
“Nothing instills any confidence that he has learned to respect the law, and the sentence should reflect that,” Preska said.
The comments came after Mora Nunez asked the court to consider his young daughter and his desire to become a better father.
Officer Sinclair Still Recovering
The shooting has continued to affect Sinclair more than a year after the attack.
According to prosecutors, Sinclair has been unable to return to work and continues to undergo facial surgeries as he recovers from his injuries. The case is not completely over for Mora Nunez and Aybar-Berroa.
Mora Nunez continues to face a separate attempted murder case brought by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, where he could face 25 years to life in prison if convicted.
Aybar-Berroa is also charged in the state case. Both men have pleaded not guilty to those state charges and are scheduled to return to court in November.
For Sinclair, the case represents a long recovery following a violent encounter that began as a late-night robbery along the Hudson River and left an off-duty federal law enforcement officer with serious facial injuries.
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