“I would like to thank Officer Nelson Vergara for his act of bravery and professionalism while being caught in an unfortunate crossfire in University Heights. Although Officer Vergara was wounded, he was still able to get the job done and arrest one of the individuals involved. Officer Vergara is not only an exemplary member of the police force, but he also served our country as Marine in Iraq and was a first-responder during 9/11.
“I know I speak for all Bronxites in hoping for Officer Vergara’s speedy recovery. At the same time, we condemn these criminals who continue to commit such cowardly acts, which are putting the lives of our residents in danger.
My office will continue to work with the police, our district attorney, elected officials, and other community organizations to take as many illegal guns off of our streets as we possibly can.
“I urge all Bronxites with knowledge of illegal guns in their community to call 866-GUN-STOP to anonymously report those guns to the police, a program that my office continues to promote through our ‘Peace in our Streets’ campaign,” said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.
More information on the 866-GUN-STOP program can be found at the following link:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/home/rewards.shtml