New York City comptroller and mayoral candidate Brad Lander was arrested by federal officers inside a Manhattan immigration court on Tuesday, according to a spokesperson for his office.
Multiple videos on social media show Lander being put in handcuffs after officers surrounded him in a hallway at the court building as he’s standing up against a wall next to another man.
One of the videos shows Lander appearing to stand in the way of officers who were trying to arrest a man. As he blocks officers, the officers move in and arrest him following a brief scuffle in which Lander appears to be placed in a chokehold and is then pushed up against a wall, the video shows.
“You don’t have a judicial warrant,” Lander says to the officers as he held on to the man’s arm.
“I will let go when you show me the judicial warrant. Where is it?” Lander says.
Lander, a Democrat was scheduled to hold a noon press conference Tuesday calling for more legal funding for immigrants facing arrest by ICE officers following their court appearances – a practice that has increased significantly across courtrooms in the country in recent weeks.
As he was placed in handcuffs, Lander could be heard telling federal officers “you don’t have the authority to arrest US citizens.”
One of the Department of Homeland Security’s assistant secretaries said in a statement Lander prevented officers from doing their job.
“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. No one is above the law, and if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will face consequences,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement Tuesday afternoon.
Lander’s campaign released a statement following his arrest.
“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 we are monitoring the situation closely,” said Dora Pekec, Lander’s campaign spokesperson.
This story is developing and will be updated.
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