Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested New York City Comptroller and mayoral candidate Brad Lander after he obstructed an operation.
“New York City Comptroller Brad Lander was arrested for assaulting law enforcement and impeding a federal officer. 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,” Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said. “No one is above the law, and if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will face consequences.”
Lander’s wife, Meg Barnette, explained on her husband’s X account, “While escorting a defendant out of immigration court at 26 Federal Plaza, Brad was taken by masked agents and detained by ICE.”
“You don’t have the authority to arrest U.S. citizens,” Lander is heard saying in a video. “I’m not obstructing, I’m standing right here in the hallway, I asked to see the judicial warrant.”
Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani, also running for mayor, condemned the development, calling it “fascism” and urging New Yorkers to “speak in one voice.”
Last week, Lander demanded that New York City boost its legal services for immigrants.
“Despite New York being a welcoming harbor for generations of immigrants, President Donald Trump and ICE are now abducting immigrants as their cases are dismissed in court, leaving many New York immigrants frozen in fear,” Lander said. “During Trump’s first term, our City protested at airports and over bridges, filed injunctions against executive orders, and stood up pro-bono legal services—and this time, New York City can be greater and safer by protecting our immigrant neighbors, friends, and family. Rather than shutting the door on new New Yorkers as the Adams Administration has done, we can retain New York’s immigrant tradition and invest in the future of our city.”
