Illegal Immigrant On The Run After Stabbing NYPD Officer 7 Times
An illegal immigrant from the Dominican Republic is accused of stabbing an off-duty NYPD officer seven times before fleeing the scene. D’Angelo Caraballo,…
You read about this stuff and sometimes it feels like a bad script. An off-duty NYPD detective is putting groceries or whatever into his trunk in the Bronx on a Tuesday afternoon, and two illegal immigrants roll up on an e-bike and one of them stabs him seven times. Then they just ride away.
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An illegal immigrant from the Dominican Republic is accused of stabbing an off-duty NYPD officer seven times before fleeing the scene.
D’Angelo Caraballo, 25, and Sneider Mejia, 24, pulled up on an e-bike as 33-year-old Police Detective Jose Mercedes was taking items out of the trunk of his car in the Bronx around 1:45 p.m. on Friday, according to the New York Post. The illegal immigrants are accused of trying to steal Mercedes’ gold chain, but the off-duty cop put up a fight and was allegedly stabbed seven times by Caraballo.
The suspects took off, leaving the bloodied detective on the sidewalk, the outlet reported. Both suspects remain at large.
Police identified the suspects Tuesday amid the ongoing manhunt. Both suspects crossed the border illegally in 2023 before the Biden administration released them into the country, Fox News reported.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had previously issued a detainer for Mejia’s arrest, according to the Post. He was arrested last year, but the details of the case are under seal.
Mejia also received a deportation order last year, according to Fox News.
Caraballo was arrested in July for menacing after he allegedly threatened to stab a person who rented him a room in the Bronx, the Post reported. Authorities also arrested him in 2025 on a gun possession charge after he allegedly had a loaded.380 Taurus gun in his car.
The detective’s uncle decried the justice system that allowed the criminal to go free before the stabbing.
“We want the justice system to ensure the police do their job effectively, but the courts go too easy on them, sending criminals right back out on the street,” Ricardo Mercedes, the officer’s uncle, told the Post. “We want a tough stance from the justice system.”
“The police catch them, but then they’re let go — right back out on the street. That is what we want to change,” his uncle added.
This past Friday, NYPD Detective Jose Mercedes was stabbed multiple times during a robbery in the Bronx. Despite his serious injuries, Detective Mercedes chased after his attackers on foot.
Today, in another incredible feat of strength and determination, Detective Mercedes got up from his wheelchair and walked out of Jacobi Medical Center on his own two feet. Hundreds of members of the NYPD were there to cheer their brother on.
The entire department stands behind Detective Mercedes as he continues his recovery. And the greatest detectives in the world will relentlessly pursue those responsible for this crime.
— Jessica S. Tisch (@NYPDPC) October 6, 2026
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch paid Mercedes a visit at the hospital, according to the New York Post.
Mercedes was released from the hospital on Monday and was seen being rolled out in a wheelchair before he stood up and walked out on his own before a cheering crowd of hundreds of NYPD officers.
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New Republican Times Editorial Board
You read about this stuff and sometimes it feels like a bad script. An off-duty NYPD detective is putting groceries or whatever into his trunk in the Bronx on a Tuesday afternoon, and two illegal immigrants roll up on an e-bike and one of them stabs him seven times. Then they just ride away. Now the primary suspect is on the run. That’s not a policy debate. That's a headline that tells you everything.
The suspects are D’Angelo Caraballo, 25, and Sneider Mejia, 24. Caraballo is from the Dominican Republic and is in the country illegally. The victim is Detective Jose Mercedes, 33, a police officer who wasn't even in uniform. He was off duty. He was just a man near his car. And still, the people we're told not to profile found him and put a knife in him half a dozen times. We're supposed to believe this is random. We're supposed to believe immigration enforcement has nothing to do with public safety.
This is the real cost of refusing to enforce the law. Every time a city like New York touts its sanctuary status, it's making a bet that the illegal immigrants won't be the ones committing the violence. The bet just lost again. The detective will recover, thank God, but the message to every NYPD officer is unmistakable: the people you're sworn to protect, and who are supposed to be protected themselves, are more vulnerable than ever. The suspect is still out there. And that's not a failure of policing. It's a failure of political will. Until that changes, stories like this one are going to keep writing themselves.
Commentary written with AI assistance by the New Republican Times Editorial Board.