‘Absolutely Zero Reason’

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Monday visited the Customs and Border Protection officer who was shot in New York City over the weekend during an attempted robbery involving a previously-deported illegal immigrant, while blaming sanctuary policies for playing a role in the attack.

The off-duty officer was allegedly struck in the face and forearm in Manhattan’s Riverside Park on Saturday night. Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez, a Dominican national who was caught by Border Patrol in April 2023, was taken into custody following the shooting.

“There’s absolutely zero reason that someone who is scum of the earth like this should be running loose on the streets of New York City,” Noem told reporters Monday in reference to Nunez. “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.”

“We were able to bring the second individual in and have detained him as well, and he will face consequences and hopefully strong prosecution for his crimes and his involvement on Saturday night,” she added. The alleged accomplice was also in the country illegally, she said.

Multiple sources within U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement told Fox News that the men involved in the shooting and attempted robbery are believed to be the same men caught on video in an armed robbery of a business in Leominster, Massachusetts, in February.

Sources said in that incident – during which a store owner reportedly was bound with duct tape and held at gunpoint – two firearms were stolen.