COURIER LIFE, F 14 EBRUARY 12-18, 2021
One year after ICE
shooting, family
still seeking justice
Kevin Yanez Cruz walks near where his brother Erick Diaz-Cruz was shot in Gravesend on
Feb. 6, 2020. One year later, their family is still seeking justice. File photo by Todd Maisel
BY ROSE ADAMS
The shooting of a Mexican man in
Gravesend by Immigration and Customs
Enforcement sparked protests
and political outrage last February.
But one year later, as the family battles
hefty medical bills, they feel their
calls for action fell on deaf ears.
“In the name of my family, I’m here
asking for justice for my son,” said Carmen
Cruz at a protest held last Saturday,
the anniversary of the shooting.
“My son is still recuperating and my
partner is still not completely free.”
Erick Diaz-Cruz, 26, was sleeping
in his mother’s home in Gravesend
on Feb. 6, 2020 when federal immigration
agents knocked on the door.
Cruz — who was visiting his mother
from Mexico on a valid tourist visa
— rushed outside, where plainclothes
agents claiming to be New York City
police offi cers were trying to arrest
his mother’s long-term partner, Gaspar
Avendaño-Hernandez.
Minutes after Diaz-Cruz confronted
the agents, one offi cer pulled out a gun.
Diaz-Cruz covered his face with his
hands before the offi cer fi red at him
from only a few feet away, sending the
bullet through his hand and into his
left cheek, according to court fi lings.
One witness said at the time that
the shooting seemed unwarranted.
“He was right there and the offi cer
pulled a gun, and shot the guy. It just
didn’t look professional. He wouldn’t
tell the guy why they were arresting
him,” said Avi Zlita, who still had
blood on his sleeve after tending to Diaz
Cruz after the shooting.
An agent also tased Avendaño-Hernandez
between 15 and 20 times as he
resisted their attempts to cuff him, according
to Avendaño-Hernandez’s lawyer
and the victim’s brother. Both victims
were unarmed.
ICE said they targeted Avendaño-
Hernandez, 36, after a recent traffi c
stop by the NYPD, and that he had
been deported twice before and had a
2011 assault conviction.
Emergency personnel transported
Diaz-Cruz and Avendaño-Hernandez to
Maimonides Medical Center in stable
condition. Inside the hospital, ICE offi -
cers prevented relatives and legal counsel
from seeing both men, Carmen Cruz
later testifi ed, and it wasn’t until the
Mexican Consulate General intervened
that she saw her family that night.
After Avendaño-Hernandez was
released from the hospital, federal
agents detained him with the help of
the NYPD — a potential violation of
the city’s sanctuary city policies — Diaz
Cruz’s mother, Carmen, said in an
emotional testimony.
“Finally, when the moment came
that the federal authorities wanted to
kidnap my partner, we saw other offi -
cials from this city, police from New
York City, come out to help. But instead
of helping and protecting those
who were the victims of a crime, my
partner and my family, they came out
to help the federal government,” she
said in Spanish during a Feb. 28 hearing
held by the City Council. “This
needs to be investigated.”
Looking for answers
The incident sparked protests outside
the hospital and outrage from
elected offi cials. Brooklyn Congressmembers
Jerrold Nadler and Nydia
Velazquez wrote a joint letter demanding
that the agency brief them on the
Continued on page 16
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