Still grieving for her son Asdrubal, Flor Bernier stepped carefully to the podium in New Haven Police Headquarters, determined to salute police for arresting the man they believe shot her son to death.
"I don't know how to speak English well," she said, "but I want to say thank you to all of you...may have justice for my son."
Police say 31-year-old Jimmy Morales-Luciano, who recently moved to New Haven from Puerto Rico, where he served time in prison for carjacking and kidnapping, shot Asdrubal Bernier Jr. several times last Wednesday night in the Fair Haven section of New Haven.
Detectives worked around the clock, said Chief Dean Esserman. "A child of this family is a child of New Haven," he said, "and will always be treated as such."
Assistant Chief Archie Generoso would not reveal exactly how police found Morales-Luciano, other than to praise police for their work. He said patrol officers worked closely with detectives.
"We did secure a search warrant for a storage area on Front Avenue in West Haven," he said, "where we've recovered three weapons, one of them we believe to be the murder weapon."
Morales-Luciano was arrested at a courthouse in New Haven. Police say he was there for an unrelated matter.
Generoso said New Haven detectives should have "results shortly" on two unsolved homicides.