Happy Monday! We were off last week, during which time very little occurred in New York City.
Sure, Zohran Mamdani celebrated his inauguration with a blowout block party that took over the area around City Hall. Yes, the MetroCard was officially retired and the fare for buses and trains went up to $3. Oh, and the Trump administration led a military operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and transported him to New York City, where he is being held in federal custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Sunset Park. But would you really call those “occurrences”?
Maduro made his first court appearance today at a courthouse in Lower Manhattan on charges of drug trafficking, where he was met by crowds of protestors chanting “Hands off of Venezuela” and “U.S. out of Latin America.”
Mayor Mamdani, who is no stranger to the international spotlight, said at a press conference yesterday that he called the president to “register opposition to this act […] to the pursuit of regime change, [and] to the violation of international and federal law.”
Metropolitan Detention Center, where Maduro and his wife will be held for the time being, is a notorious federal prison that has played host to a number of high-profile inmates, including United HealthCare CEO assassin Luigi Mangione, rap mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, cryptocurrency billionaire Sam Bankman Fried, former President of Honduras Juan Orlando Hernandez and Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo’’ Guzman.
Governor Kathy Hochul will include the “Stop Online Predators Act” in her State of the State Address. The bill, introduced by State Sen. Andrew Gounardes, protects kids on platforms like Roblox.
Brooklyn closes 2025 with the lowest levels of gun violence on record, according to District Attorney Eric Gonzalez.
Advocates praised the mayor’s decision to complete the redesign of McGuinness Boulevard, known as a dangerous traffic corridor.
Upon completion, each direction of McGuinness will have one travel lane, one parking-protected bike lane and one vehicular parking and loading lane.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are being held at Sunset Park’s Metropolitan Detention Center after being charged with narco-terrorism, importing cocaine and possessing machine guns.
New York State Nurses Association delivered 10-day strike notices to a dozen private sector hospitals across the city — five of them in Brooklyn — two days after their contract expired on Dec. 31. It could be the largest nurses’ strike in New York City history.
Strong MTA ridership growth in 2025: Nearly 1.9 billion trips were logged on New York City Transit’s subway, bus and paratransit services, representing an increase of about 7% from 2024.
Thousands rang in the new year at the 123rd annual Coney Island Polar Bear Club Plunge on Thursday, Jan.1. This year, temperatures were as low as 23 degrees, but it didn’t stop swimmers. See the photos online.
The first Brooklyn baby born this year was Noah Joseph Lewis, who arrived at 2:22 am on Jan. 1, 2026, at Maimonides. Noah’s mother, a Flatbush local, felt “Very blessed to be beginning this year with a new addition to our family.”
Our World In Photos
Photo: Ng Han Guan/AP
CHINA — The polar bear syndrome — from Coney Island all the way around the world: A winter swimmer jumps into icy water in Harbin in China's Heilongjiang province on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026.
For more pictures like this, see Our World in Photos.
PFAS in pregnant women’s drinking water puts their babies at higher risk, study finds
When pregnant women drink water that comes from wells downstream of sites contaminated with PFAS, known as “forever chemicals,” the risks to their babies’ health substantially increase, a new study found. These risks include the chance of low birth weight, preterm birth and infant mortality. Read on to learn how PFAS affect pregnancies.
The Mini
Our solver finished in 1 minute 43 seconds. Can you beat it?
Cartoon Sketchbook
By Dave Whamond
For the Road
Dig in: A new Latin-Greek fusion restaurant, Naxos Brooklyn, officially opened in Williamsburg, located at 470 Driggs Ave. The ownership group, five partners of Dominican and Colombian background, said that the concept originated from a shared appreciation for Greek cuisine and a desire to connect it with their own cultural roots. Read more here.
Happy Birthday to model and actress Suki Waterhouse!
On This Day in 1902, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON, JAN. 4 — A proposition to sell the Panama Canal properties to the United States government for $40,000,000 today was submitted to the authorities here.”
Got a tip? Send it in to [email protected].