Mora, 27, was shot along with officer Jason Rivera after they
and a third officer, a rookie, responded to a Jan. 21
disturbance in Harlem in which a woman said she was having a
fight with one of her sons. Rivera, 22, also died from his
injuries and his funeral service was last week.
Hundreds of mourners and New York police officers, dressed in
pressed blue suits and white gloves, packed the iconic Manhattan
cathedral.
Wilson Mora said his brother was an affectionate, impossibly
patient, big teddy bear of a man whose smile lit up rooms.
"I just want you to know that I was always proud of you," he
said. "I love you baby bro and I will always miss you."
Mora was born the youngest of four children in the Dominican
Republic. He came to the United States when he was 7 years old.
Even as a young boy, all he ever wanted to do was to become a
police officer, Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell said.
"He absolutely loved this job," Sewell said. "With a kind,
gentle soul and infectious laugh, he cared deeply about his
family and truly valued his friends."
Mora, an organ donor to five people, gave even in his death,
speakers during the service said.
Mora's funeral was held hours after another police officer was
shot and wounded in Queens when two suspects tried to steal his
car when he was on his way to work, local media reported.
Last week, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a former police
captain, announced a plan to end gun violence that included
increasing the number of police officers in the city's most
violence-plagued communities.
"New Yorkers understand the risk and sacrifice you make every
day and we applaud you for that," Adams told officers in the
pews for Mora's funeral. "We are going to give you the resources
to fight this senseless violence. It's New Yorkers against the
killers and we will not lose."
On Jan. 21, shortly after arriving on the scene, Mora and Rivera
were fired upon in a narrow hallway by the woman's adult son.
The rookie officer then shot the suspect who died of his
injuries.
(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien. Editing by Donna Bryson and Diane
Craft)
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