New York City Comptroller and far-left mayoral candidate Brad Lander was arrested Tuesday by ICE agents after he obstructed a federal immigration enforcement operation outside a Manhattan immigration court.
Video footage from the scene shows Lander physically interfering with federal agents as they attempted to detain an individual, reportedly an illegal immigrant, outside 26 Federal Plaza.
Lander repeatedly demanded to see a judicial warrant and refused to remove his hand from the detainee’s shoulder, attempting to block agents from carrying out their lawful duty.
NYC Comptroller Brad Lander arrested after confronting ICE agents, demanding to see a warrant before they could detain an illegal immigrant. pic.twitter.com/cklaE24xQC
— Resist Times (@resistupdates) June 17, 2025
“You don’t have the authority to arrest U.S. citizens,” Lander shouted—though there has been no confirmation that the individual in custody was a citizen. After multiple warnings and his continued interference, agents gave the command: “Take him in.” Lander was then placed in handcuffs and arrested on charges of obstruction of governmental administration.
The dramatic standoff was captured on video and quickly spread across social media, drawing applause from critics who say Lander’s radical activism has gone too far.
“This is what happens when out-of-touch politicians think they’re above the law,” one federal official told The Post. “ICE was doing its job, and Mr. Lander decided to turn it into a political circus.”
Lander was reportedly at the courthouse to observe immigration proceedings in response to President Trump’s recent call for stricter enforcement in sanctuary cities like New York. Brad Lander has long opposed federal immigration enforcement and has championed policies that shield illegal immigrants from deportation, even at the expense of public safety.
A spokesperson for Brad Lander, Dora Pekec, confirmed that he was arrested by ICE agents and attempted to cast him as a victim, saying, “Brad Lander was taken by masked agents and detained by ICE. This is still developing, and we are monitoring the situation closely.”