Wild scenes break out as New York mayoral candidate Brad Lander is arrested by ICE agents at immigration court

Sky News AU

6 hours ago

City comptroller Brad Lander was dramatically arrested by ICE agents Tuesday in a chaotic scene outside a federal immigration court – a caught-on-video moment ready-made for potentially boosting his mayoral campaign.
Lander was detained for several hours before he walked from 26 Federal Plaza alongside Gov. Kathy Hochul, announcing charges against him of assaulting and obstructing the feds were dropped.
'What this is about is making sure that everybody has an opportunity to have a lawyer, to have their due process,' he said after his release.
Eye-popping video showed Lander being manhandled and cuffed by the feds after the comptroller vocally protested masked federal agents hauling away a man leaving an immigration hearing.
Lander repeatedly demanded to see a judicial warrant as he kept his hand clutched on the detainee's shoulder, video obtained by The Post shows.
After Lander refused to let go, an officer could be heard saying, 'Take him in,' prompting agents to cuff him.
'You don't have the authority to arrest US citizens,' Lander repeated in protest, video shows.
'I'm not obstructing, I am standing right here in the hallway. I asked to see the judicial warrant. … You don't have the authority to arrest US citizens asking for a judicial warrant.'
Lander was arrested for allegedly assaulting law enforcement and impeding a federal officer, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said.
'Our heroic ICE law enforcement officers face a 413% increase in assaults against them — it is wrong that politicians seeking higher office undermine law enforcement safety to get a viral moment,' the spokesperson said in a statement. 'No one is above the law, and if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will face consequences.'
But a video posted by amNY reporter shows no obvious assault by Lander, who was pulled away from the immigrant by several federal agents.
Sources said Lander pushed a federal agent's hands away.
Lander, who is running for the Democratic mayoral nomination, had been at the federal court to observe immigration proceedings after President Trump's recent call for ICE to target New York City and other Democrat-led cities.
Opponents of Trump's hardline crackdown in the Big Apple have decried ICE agents detaining immigrants for potential deportation after they show up for routine court hearings.
Lander in recent days has been attending immigration hearings – this was his third such visit.
His wife, Meg Barnette, told reporters after Lander's detention that he linked arms with an immigrant who had his asylum case dismissed – a step that could lead to deportation even if there's an appeal.
The immigrant was quickly swarmed by ICE agents as Lander tried to escort him from the courtroom, a campaign spokesperson said.
Video shows that Lander repeatedly tried to get the agents to cough up a warrant and identify themselves, but was rebuffed.
Sources said Lander and others would lock arms with immigrants who were likely to face ICE detention in an effort to walk them to an elevator, and freedom beyond.
Lander had locked arms with two or three immigrants before the kerfuffle, and had let go when ICE moved in to make an arrest, sources said.
But during the final escort, Lander would not release his arms to let the feds take custody and had pushed their hands away, sources contended.
The accusation that Lander assaulted a fed – besides being arguably unclear, at best, in video – drew skepticism from another source.
'I'm not sure he's capable of assaulting a damp napkin,' the source quipped.
Lander's attention-grabbing moment in the courthouse 12th-floor hall quickly prompted an outcry from his fellow Democrats in the mayoral race, even among his bitter enemy former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
'This is the latest example of the extreme thuggery of Trump's ICE out of control — one can only imagine the fear families across our country feel when confronted with ICE,' Cuomo tweeted.
Socialist Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani (D-Queens), who recently cross-endorsed Lander in the ranked-choice primary, called for his immediate release.
'We saw that ICE has no interest in the law,' Mamdani said. 'It has no interest in order. It only has an interest in terrorizing people across this country.
'And in this exact moment, New Yorkers and Americans are looking to leaders to meet this moment, to showcase the courage that is necessary. The stark contrast from the collaboration and the cowardice we have seen, and what Brad did was engage in that very moment of courage. He showed us what leadership can look like.'
Notably silent on Lander's run in with the feds, was his political nemesis in City Hall, Mayor Eric Adams.
Meanwhile, Gov. Kathy Hochul had a spicy response.
'It's b*******,' she reportedly said.
Originally published as Wild scenes break out as New York mayoral candidate Brad Lander is arrested by ICE agents at immigration court