Police said a 24-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the murder of Daniel Valdez, 43, in Kingsbridge on May 2.

 

Police said on Monday, May 2, at 5.53 p.m., officers responded to a report of a man who had been assaulted at a location on Irwin Avenue. Upon arrival, they discovered a 43-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the torso. EMS responded and transported the victim to NYC Health and Hospitals/Harlem where he was pronounced deceased. There were no initial arrests and the investigation was ongoing.

 

On Tuesday, May 3, the NYPD said the deceased was identified as Daniel Valdez, 43, of Irwim Avenue in the Kingsbridge section of The Bronx.

 

On Wednesday, May 4, The Daily Voice, a publication which covers parts of New Jersey, reported that a man from the New Jersey borough of Fair Lawn was being held in custody in connection with the fatal shooting of his uncle in The Bronx. Norwood News is unable to confirm if the story in question relates to the shooting of Daniel Valdez in Kingsbridge or another incident.

 

The media outlet reported that, according to ranking New Jersey law enforcement sources, detectives with Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office [in New Jersey] began investigating after a 24-year-old man showed up at the emergency room of New Jersey’s Hackensack University Medical Center [HUMC] with his mother on Tuesday, May 3.

 

One of the New Jersey law enforcement officials reportedly told The Daily Voice that the man’s mother allegedly said her son “may have shot and killed his uncle in The Bronx” the night before [May 2], and had reportedly become suicidal. The law enforcement official reportedly added, “She reported he did have a gun.”

 

The Daily Voice further reported that, according to the NYPD, Valdez, the victim, had let his killer in, then was shot in the torso during a fight as family members sat in a nearby room. Norwood News contacted the NYPD on May 4 and again on May 19, to corroborate the accuracy of The Daily Voice story as it pertained to statements attributed to the NYPD. On May 22, when contacted once again, an NYPD official said the department could only confirm that as of May 22, there was no arrest on file in connection with the Daniel Valdez case.

 

In their story, the Daily Voice also reported that “multiple sources” had reported that NYPD detectives went to HUMC (Hackensack University Medical Center) in Hackensack, New Jersey after a 24-year-old man showed up there with his mother on Tuesday morning, and that a 5-foot, 3-inch, 140-pound suspect was arrested soon afterwards. Again, when contacted, an NYPD official said they could only confirm that there was no arrest on file in connection with the Daniel Valdez case.

 

The Daily Voice further reported that a suspect was allegedly in custody in Bergen County Jail on “fugitive from justice charges” while prosecutors pursued an extradition hearing. The publication also reported that NYPD officials allegedly said – without identifying the suspect by name – that their investigators were looking to question a suspect who they had identified only as “a relative” [of the victim]. Once again, when contacted by Norwood News, the NYPD could only confirm that there was no arrest on file in connection with the Daniel Valdez homicide case.

 

According to The Daily Voice story, investigators went with Bergen County prosecutor’s detectives and Fair Lawn police to the home of the suspect’s mother in New Jersey, among other locations on Tuesday, May 3. “The weapon wasn’t immediately recovered,” a New Jersey law enforcement official reportedly said. “[It’s] possibly at a different family member’s home.”

 

Norwood News called Fair Lawn police department on Wednesday, May 4, to corroborate elements of the story referencing Fair Lawn police, and were referred to the Bergen County Prosecutor’s office. At that point, the Prosecutor’s office was closed for the day. We followed up a number of times with Bergen County Prosecutor’s office and on Friday, May 6, we received the following reply, “We don’t have any information to provide on this. Please contact authorities in New York for information as this is an NYPD investigation.”

 

When we later contacted the NYPD and asked them about a possible arrest in New Jersey in connection with the case, we were advised that we would have to follow up with the authorities in New Jersey. Norwood News also contacted the Bronx District Attorney’s office at the time about the case. We did not receive an immediate response.

 

On Wednesday, May 25, pursuant to an ongoing investigation, the NYPD said Jonathan Mejia, 24, of Fairlawn, NJ was arrested with regard to the homicide of Daniel Valdez. He was charged with murder, manslaughter, and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon.

 

In light of the arrest, we asked the NYPD if, once again, they could corroborate the details outlined in the Daily Voice story and if the photo published by the Daily Voice of a Jonathan Mejia was the Jonathan Mejia who was arrested in connection with the case. A police source confirmed the point regarding the photo (which is now attached). They later added, “He [Mejia] was extradited from Bergen County NJ. The victim is his uncle.” We were referred to the Bronx DA’s office for further details.

We reached out once again to the Bronx District Attorney’s office in light of the arrest to corroborate the information in the Daily Voice story. A representative replied, saying the defendant, Mejia, had been arraigned and is remanded in custody. He is due back in court on May 31.

 

A person arrested and charged with a crime is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law.

 

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/