MANHATTAN (PIX11) — Mourning police officers from New York and beyond gave a final salute Friday to Officer Jason Rivera, a rookie colleague gunned down with his partner a week ago in Harlem.
The morning funeral Mass started at 9 a.m. at St. Patrick’s Cathedral for the officer, who, at age 22, was recently married and barely into his second year of service on the force.
Watch Rivera’s funeral service in full below:
Roman Catholic Cardinal Timothy Dolan presided over the service. Many of the city’s top leaders were in attendance, including Mayor Eric Adams and NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell, who both gave eulogies.
Sewell announced a posthumous promotion for Rivera to detective first-grade during a powerful speech.
Rivera’s brother, also gave an emotional eulogy, remembering how the NYPD hero always wanted to be an officer. “Since he was a baby, he knew what he wanted to do for the rest of his life and he knew who he wanted to be with for the rest of his life. My brother wasn’t afraid to wear that uniform… Your big brother is very, very proud of you.”
Just a day earlier, thousands of uniformed officers, as well as ordinary citizens, filed into the Roman Catholic cathedral for Rivera’s public wake on Thursday.
Rivera and a partner, Officer Wilbert Mora, were fatally wounded Jan. 21 by a gunman who ambushed them in a hallway as they responded to a family dispute. Mora’s funeral is being held next week, also at St. Patrick’s.
Gov. Kathy Hochul said flags at state buildings would fly at half-staff from sunrise the day of Rivera’s funeral Friday until sunset the day of Mora’s funeral, Feb. 2.
When the two officers responded last Friday to a domestic dispute involving 47-year-old Lashawn McNeil and his mother, authorities said McNeil swung open a bedroom door and opened fire with a 45-caliber pistol outfitted with a modified 40-round clip, hitting both officers in the head.
Rivera died that night, while Mora, 27, was pronounced dead at the hospital this past Tuesday.
A third officer, Sumit Sulan, a rookie who was shadowing Mora and Rivera — shot McNeil as he tried to flee. The gunman, 47, died Monday, authorities said.
Officer Mora continued to save lives even after his death, donating his organs to save five people who desperately needed them, according to LiveOnNY.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
