As night fell over the George Washington Bridge on Tuesday, two men in two different cars drove toward the bridge from Manhattan, heading in the direction of the New York City suburbs in Rockland County.
Two minutes later, one of the men was dead and the other was speeding north, toward home.
Victor Romero, 62, a retired New York Police Department detective, was arraigned on a manslaughter charge on Thursday in the death of Koran Irvine, 46, a Con Edison worker who died from a single gunshot wound on the bridge during his evening commute.
The shooting was captured by surveillance video, and Mr. Romero was arrested on Wednesday. Mr. Romero’s bail was set at $1 million on Thursday.
Matthew Sears, a prosecutor for the Manhattan district attorney’s office described the incident as a “particularly senseless killing.”
On Oct. 20 at 6:47 p.m., according to prosecutors, Mr. Irvine attempted to change lanes as he approached the bridge, and nearly collided with Mr. Romero, whose S.U.V. moved into the same lane at the same time. Both men slammed on the brakes, avoiding a crash, and continued on toward the bridge, prosecutors said.
Moments later, Mr. Romero began driving closely behind Mr. Irvine, before quickly pulling alongside the right side of Mr. Irvine’s car and firing a gun, prosecutors said. Mr. Irvine’s car slowed and veered into the right lane before speeding across four lanes of traffic and crashing into the center median. Mr. Irvine was found dead from a single bullet that traveled through his rear passenger window and hit his back right shoulder. There was no exit wound.
Meanwhile, Mr. Romero sped around Mr. Irvine’s car and continued driving home. Mr. Sears, the prosecutor, noted that Mr. Romero did not call 911.
They had both been driving toward their homes, which were just a few miles apart. Mr. Irvine moved from the city to Valley Cottage three years ago, while Mr. Romero has lived less than 10 miles away in Haverstraw for at least the last decade.
At Mr. Irvine’s yellow, ranch-style house on Thursday, inflatable Halloween decorations blew back and forth in the yard. Mr. Irvine was born and raised in Brooklyn and loved hip-hop and sports — specifically, the New York Jets, according to his friend, Scott Johnson, 44, who lives in Harlem. Mr. Irvine was “the image” of an amazing husband and father, he said.
Mr. Irvine was part of a large tailgating group who often showed up to home games and cheered on their beleaguered hometown team. Mr. Irvine could frequently be found manning the grill.
“Everybody knew Koran was running the show,” Mr. Johnson said. “He was so amazing at hosting, he knew how to cook, he knew how to have a good time and get everybody in a good mood. You have to be — it’s the Jets.”
In Haverstraw, a town of about 40,000 people tucked along a small inlet of the Hudson River, Mr. Romero lived in a development of identical three-story white clapboard townhouses with gabled roofs.
His neighbors described him as a pleasant man who hosted Fourth of July barbecues. He was “a normal neighbor,” according to Hector Lora, 48.
“He was a gentleman,” said Fantino Depena, 58, another resident of the development.
As prosecutors described the events of Tuesday night at the hearing, Mr. Romero, wearing a pressed white button up shirt and slacks, stood quietly, his hands behind his back. Members of Mr. Irvine’s family crowded into the gallery behind him.
Mr. Romero’s SUV, which is owned by his employer, was traced to his workplace’s garage, prosecutors said. When a detective found the car at the garage, Mr. Romero said the car was his and handed over a loaded revolver, which he told the police he always carries with him. The police found two additional guns in Mr. Romero’s house, prosecutors said.
Mr. Romero’s lawyer requested a smaller bail amount, emphasizing his client’s “sterling record” as a police officer and responsibilities as a father to four children.
Keith White, a lawyer for Mr. Irvine’s family, said at a news conference outside the courthouse that prosecutors should have brought murder charges against Mr. Romero and should have remanded him without bail.
Zeria Irvine, Mr. Irvine’s sister, cried as she described her brother as a loving father of an 11-year-old son and a 14-year-old daughter. She said he often worked overtime for Con Edison and at times went in seven days a week. On most of his commutes home, Ms. Irvine said, she spoke with him on the phone as he drove over the George Washington Bridge.
“To go home that same night and have dinner, that same night my brother was not able to have dinner with his children or his wife,” Ms. Irvine said of Mr. Romero, “You are not even an ounce of what my brother is.”
Hurubie Meko and Andrea Barnes contributed reporting. Sheelagh McNeill contributed research.
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