On the evening of the 20th, Con Edison employee Koran Irvin, 46, was shot and killed while driving on the upper level of the George Washington Bridge toward New Jersey. Police believe it was a road rage incident that followed a near collision on an approach ramp. The next day, retired NYPD detective Victor Romero, 62, voluntarily accompanied officers and was arrested on a murder charge. The gun and the vehicle were recovered. The upper level toward New Jersey was closed for about five to six hours.
A driver was shot and killed on the George Washington Bridge, which connects Fort Lee and Manhattan. Police believe it was a road rage incident in which someone in the other vehicle fired a shot after a dispute over a near collision. The day after the shooting, a retired NYPD detective was arrested on a murder charge. Here is a chronological summary of what has been reported so far.
Timeline of Events
A Dispute That Began on the Approach Ramp
According to police, the incident began around 7 p.m. on the 20th. A Volkswagen Golf driven by the victim, Koran Irvin, 46, nearly collided with another vehicle on the approach ramp to the upper level toward New Jersey, and a dispute followed. The two vehicles continued toward New Jersey, and on the bridge someone in the other vehicle fired a shot. The bullet passed through the rear window on the passenger side of Irvin's car and struck him.
Irvin's car kept rolling until it hit the center divider near the middle of the bridge and stopped. Port Authority Police (PAPD) officers who first responded had received a report of a "single-vehicle crash," but at the scene they found Irvin unconscious in the driver's seat with a gunshot wound. He was taken to Englewood Hospital in New Jersey but died. Media reports differ on where he was shot, citing the head and the back of the right shoulder, among others.
Retired Detective Arrested the Next Day
Police identified the suspect by analyzing CCTV footage around the bridge. The NYPD said that on the 21st, investigators located Victor Romero, 62, who lives in Haverstraw, N.Y., and that Romero "voluntarily accompanied police." Some news outlets reported this as a surrender. Romero was arrested on a murder charge. Police recovered a gun and a vehicle believed to have been used in the crime and are searching his home. The type of gun, whether he had a permit to carry it, which prosecutor's office will handle the case and the date of his court appearance have not yet been disclosed.
Romero is a former Brooklyn narcotics detective who retired from the NYPD in 2001. In June 2000, before his retirement, while off duty, he confronted robbers who burst into his family's Brooklyn dry cleaner and was shot in the hand and chest. His defense attorney has not been identified. An arrest alone does not establish guilt, and the charge will be decided at trial.
Con Edison Employee of 20 Years
Irvin, who died, was a father of two from Valley Cottage in Rockland County, N.Y. He had worked at Con Edison for nearly 20 years and was off duty at the time of the incident. In a statement, Con Edison offered condolences to his family, saying, "We are heartbroken to have lost a member of the Con Edison family to this senseless violence." An online fundraiser to help the family is also under way.
Impact on Bridge Users
Right after the incident, the upper-level lanes toward New Jersey were blocked, and cars trying to leave Manhattan on the evening commute lined up for long stretches. The Port Authority said delays reached 90 minutes at one point. All lanes reopened around 1 a.m. on the 21st, and traffic flowed normally during the morning commute.
The George Washington Bridge is a route that Korean Americans in Bergen County, including Fort Lee and Palisades Park, use every day. Police advise drivers who get into a dispute on the road not to respond in kind, but to put distance between themselves and the other vehicle and call 911. Simply remembering the other vehicle's license plate number can be a great help to an investigation. We will report further developments in the investigation.