Rivera condemns shooting of police

Police shootings have come to the Bronx. News sources said on Monday night, a robber shot two plainclothes officers at a deli in Fordham Heights.

Officer Andrew Dossi was reported as being in critical but stable condition and Aliro Pellerano in stable condition after being hospitalized. They had been trying to stop a robbery on East 181st Street close to Webster Avenue — in state Sen. Gustavo Rivera’s district, which also includes part of Kingsbridge. The NYPD had reportedly found and arrested the suspected robber and an accomplice as of press time.

The incident came as tensions between the police and Mayor Bill de Blasio remain high. Elected officials in the northwest Bronx have called on parties to tone down their rhetoric since the December slayings of Officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos, which in turn followed weeks of anti-police protests in the city and the rest of the country.

In his Tuesday statement, Mr. Rivera shied away from tying the violence in his district to the city’s latest trends. Rather, he alluded to the prevalence of guns in general.

“Our police officers face many dangers while on the job, but those situations only continue to be [exacerbated] by the amount of guns we have on our streets. We need to do more to combat gun violence and reduce the amount of firearms that plague our communities,” the senator stated.

“My thought and prayers are with Officers Andrew Dossi and Aliro Pellerano, and their families,” he continued. “These two officers have truly gone beyond the call of duty to make our city a safer place to live.”

Mario Cuomo remembered

Elected officials also shared their remorse and recollections over the Jan. 1 passing of former Gov. Mario Cuomo.

Mr. Rivera recalled briefly meeting the governor after first coming to New York in 1998. By then, Mr. Cuomo was already out of office, and Mr. Rivera said their exchanges were limited to a few brief conversations.