Migrant accused of shooting two NYPD cops fired into officer’s chest ‘at point-blank range’: prosecutor
The Venezuelan migrant accused of shooting two NYPD officers fired into one cop’s chest at “point-blank range” during the wild scuffle on a Queens street, prosecutors said during a dramatic court hearing Wednesday.
The accused shooter, Bernardo Raul Castro Mata, 19, was arraigned on attempted murder charges from a hospital bed, lying comfortably and at first appearing to sleep as his image was beamed into a Queens courtroom jam-packed with more than 50 of New York’s Finest.
Assistant District Attorney Lauren Reilly laid out a harrowing run-in between Mata and Officers Christopher Abreu and Richard Yarusso, both 26, early Monday as the cops conducted a traffic stop of the scooter-riding migrant. Mata fought back and pulled a gun on Yarusso, she said.
“He placed his .380-caliber Hi-Point pistol against the officer’s chest and fired,” she said.
Mata also shot Abreu in the leg before one of the cops returned fire and struck him in the ankle, the ADA alleged.
Court documents filed Wednesday revealed new details about the police chase through the streets of Elmhurst, including the presence of a third officer — an NYPD sergeant.
The sergeant was among the 54 cops in the courtroom during the arraignment, which ended with Queens Criminal Court Judge Jeffrey Gershuny ordering Mata to be held without bail.
“There is no monetary amount of bail that would ensure his return to court,” the judge said.
