New York City mayoral candidate Brad Lander was part of a dramatic scene on Tuesday when a phalanx of federal agents descended on an immigration court facility in lower Manhattan and arrested the city comptroller.
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amNewYork reports:
The city’s elected financial watchdog, and a Democratic candidate for mayor, appeared at 26 Federal Plaza on the morning of June 17 to observe immigration hearings involving individuals marked for potential deportation.
Lander’s arrest, which amNewYork observed, occurred as the comptroller and his staff walked arm-in-arm with an immigrant whom federal agents — representing ICE, the FBI and the Treasury Department, each of whom wearing masks to conceal their faces — moved to seize after a court hearing. Moments earlier, the immigrant had their case dismissed pending appeal.
The scene was chaotic, with agents attempting to separate Lander from the immigrant with whom he was walking:
🚨BREAKING: New York City Mayoral candidate Brad Lander just got ARRESTED by ICE officers after he tried physically disrupting immigration enforcement operations.
FAFO! pic.twitter.com/vrclfWkXup
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) June 17, 2025
Here’s another angle:
.@bradlander just arrested at immigration court pic.twitter.com/nDqEK1Lzcw
— Courtney Gross (@courtneycgross) June 17, 2025
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Lander’s wife, Meg Barnette, posted on his X account: “While escorting a defendant out of immigration court at 26 Federal Plaza, Brad was taken by masked agents and detained by ICE. This is still developing, and our team is monitoring the situation closely.”
Lander continually demanded to see a warrant as the agents were moving to take the individual for deportation. When one of the officers cuffed Lander to take him into custody, he declared, “You don’t have the authority to arrest U.S. citizens. I’m not obstructing, I am standing right here in the hallway… You don’t have the authority to arrest U.S. citizens asking for a judicial warrant.”
As of publication time, it’s unclear what charges Lander faces. This is a developing story, and we’ll have more information as it becomes available.
