Controversy Erupts as NYC Judge Allegedly Allows Migrant Sex Offender to Evade Justice

In a surprising turn of events, a New York City courthouse became the center of controversy when a Democratic judge allegedly allowed a migrant with a troubling criminal history to evade capture by ICE agents. This incident has raised serious questions about the interplay between local courts and federal immigration enforcement.

The individual in question, Gerardo Miguel Mora, 45, has a record marred by multiple arrests, including one for attempted rape. His country of origin remains unknown, but what is clear is that Mora was a wanted man, with federal authorities actively seeking him due to an outstanding criminal arrest warrant. This information came to light through court documents accessed by the New York Post.

The sequence of events began when Mora was apprehended for allegedly shoplifting $130 worth of goods from an H&M store in Midtown. Following his arrest on charges of shoplifting and possession of stolen property, Mora found himself back in the clutches of Manhattan’s criminal court just a few hours later. The presiding judge, Sheridan Jack-Browne, who secured her position following a special election in Brooklyn the previous year, faced a critical decision.

Instead of transferring Mora into the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), sources told the Post that Judge Jack-Browne permitted him to depart through a less conspicuous backdoor exit. This move potentially allowed Mora to avoid the ICE agents stationed outside the courthouse, ready to take him into custody.

This incident has sparked debate over the responsibilities and decisions of local judges when it comes to cooperation with federal immigration authorities. It highlights the complex and often contentious dynamics between city policies and national immigration enforcement efforts.

‘They refused to hand him over,’ a law enforcement source told the outlet. ‘They let him out the back to avoid ICE.’

Agents chased Mora through the streets before apprehending him and placing him in federal custody, where the Department of Justice (DOJ) now has control over the next steps.

Mora has been on law enforcement’s radar since 2011, when he was arrested for allegedly attempting to rape and strangle a 21-year-old woman, according to the outlet.

Judge Sheridan Jack‑Browne (pictured) allegedly allowed illegal migrant Gerardo Miguel Mora – whose past arrests include attempted rape – to slip out a back door of a New York City courthouse to evade ICE agents on Thursday, according to the New York Post. 

According to police sources, he allegedly followed the young woman home in midtown Manhattan, choked her, and attempted to strip her clothes off.

The attack ended after a bystander, who heard the woman’s terrified cries, swiftly intervened and held Mora down until authorities arrived to arrest him, law enforcement sources told the Post. 

He then seemingly disappeared from law enforcement’s radar for the next 12 years and was believed to have been deported after the violent incident.

After more than a decade, Mora was found back in the US following his arrest for the use of a falsified identification, according to the outlet.

Last month, he was once again taken into custody on the Upper West Side for alleged possession of crack cocaine – a case that remains pending in court, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the Post. 

Federal authorities had been searching for Mora due to a criminal arrest warrant under a section of US code concerning the ‘reentry of removed aliens,’ sources said. 

The warrant was issued under a law that criminalizes reentering the country after being deported – a felony charge.

On Thursday, Mora was in court for his shoplifting case – a charge that doesn’t allow bail – when the alleged escape took place. 

Mora was allegedly allowed to exit out of the back door of the court. He has since been taken into federal custody (pictured: stock of Manhattan courthouse)

Sources told the Post that Judge Jack-Browne then allowed Mora to leave the courtroom in a way that could have let him go undetected by agents, despite being aware of the federal arrest warrant for him.

The source said that ‘everything was sent over’ to the courtroom by ICE, and the warrant – allegedly in the judge’s possession – was placed in a folder on the bench for her to review. 

Once agents realized Mora had left the courtroom, they pursued him on foot and eventually caught up with him, placing him into federal custody, the sources said.

Now the DOJ holds the reins over whether Mora will be prosecuted, deported, or both. 

The ordeal enraged federal agents, and because New York is a sanctuary city, local authorities do not cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. 

In some recent cases, federal authorities have pursued judges they believe obstructed the agency’s operations, though this is said to be a rare occurrence.