Two men sought in the Bronx stabbing of an off-duty NYPD detective were found hiding in a Massachusetts basement.

An arrest after a five-day manhunt is the end of the search, not the end of the case. Attempted murder in New York requires proof that the person intended to kill. Prosecutors will lean on the number of wounds. The defense will argue a botched grab for a chain is a robbery and an assault, not an attempt to kill. Identification also matters: the public has seen a Crime Stoppers still of two men on an e-bike, and a still is a starting point for a lineup, not proof of who held the knife. The men first have to be brought back from Massachusetts, where they can waive or contest extradition.

D'Angelo Caraballo, 25, and Sneider Mejia, 24, were arrested overnight while hiding in the basement of a house in Lynn, Massachusetts, the NYPD said Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026, according to CBS News New York and the New York Post. CBS News New York reported the arrests were made by NYPD detectives assigned to the U.S. Marshals Regional Fugitive Task Force, with help from the Boston Regional Fugitive Task Force. WCVB and WHDH 7News in Boston also reported the Lynn arrests. Police said the men will be brought back to New York City to face attempted murder charges.

Police allege the two men stabbed off-duty Det. Jose Mercedes, 33, seven times during an attempted robbery in the Bronx on the afternoon of Friday, Oct. 2. The New York Post reported that Mercedes, who is assigned to the 44th Precinct, was approached by two men on an e-bike who tried to take his gold chain, that he fought back, and that the knife missed his vital organs. CBS News New York reported a witness said the men had broken into the detective's car before he approached them, and that he tried to chase them before collapsing. He was treated at Jacobi Medical Center and has since been released. The New York Post reported that surveillance video showed Mejia driving the e-bike and Caraballo, the suspected stabber, riding behind him. That is the police account of who did what. Neither man has entered a plea, and neither has been convicted of anything.

The Department of Homeland Security said both men are from the Dominican Republic and are in the United States illegally, CBS News New York reported, and the New York Post reported both had prior arrests in New York City. Immigration status is not an element of attempted murder, and earlier arrests are not proof of this one. U.S. Marshal Ricky J. Patel said the task force worked around the clock, and Detectives' Endowment Association President Scott Munro said there was never a doubt the men would be found, according to the Post and CBS News New York. amNewYork also reported the arrests. The next step is extradition from Massachusetts, followed by arraignment in the Bronx, where prosecutors will have to decide which charges they can prove and what intent they can show. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.