Happy Tuesday in Brooklyn, where a surge of ICE activity has sparked fear and outrage across the five boroughs.
It started on Saturday night, when ICE agents brought a migrant man detained earlier that day to Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in Bushwick for treatment. News of the ICE presence spread through online community groups, and a crowd of protesters quickly gathered outside Wyckoff to prevent the federal agents from leaving the scene with the migrant in custody.
Protesters smashed out the windows in the ICE agents’ car and tried to block the road with debris before NYPD officers arrived on the scene and arrested nine people on charges of obstruction and reckless endangerment.
Around 2 a.m. on Sunday, the agents attempted to leave with the detained man, who was handcuffed. They forced their way through the remaining group of demonstrators with the aid of NYPD officers, who were seen holding back the crowd while the agents pulled the man to their car.
Video from the scene circulated widely online, sparking fury that police officers would assist the federal agents in a sanctuary city like New York, where laws prevent local police from cooperating with federal deportation efforts. The NYPD claimed in a statement that there was “no prior awareness or coordination regarding the ICE operation that took place last night.”
“There is no way that ICE could have exited the hospital and taken that person without NYPD violently arresting protesters and rapid responders, without NYPD clearing the path,” an unnamed demonstrator told ABC News. This account was echoed by City Councilmember Sandy Nurse, who wrote on social media that she witnessed what “appeared to be direct coordination between ICE and the NYPD, with officers cordoning off the ambulance bay to allow ICE to move the individual into their vehicles and leave.”
The story took another turn today with the release of a video obtained by THE CITY, showing ICE agents making the initial arrest of the migrant man on Saturday. In the video, two ICE agents force the man from his car while he screams in pain. One agent appears to fire a taser at the man numerous times, although a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security claims that the taser was never fired. The man in the video, later identified as Nigerian immigrant Chidozie Wilson Okeke, pleads for help from bystanders while yelling, “They’re killing me! They’re killing me!”
A DHS spokesperson claims that Okeke had prior charges of criminal drug possession and assault and had overstayed his tourist visa. “Our officers followed their training and used the minimum amount of force necessary to make the arrest,” the spokesperson said.
“They were choking him, hitting him, trying to get him out of the car, and the agents had bashed his car window,” Ivan Carrion, a neighbor who witnessed the scene, told THE CITY.
Following an uproar last week after Brooklyn College announced that graduates would not get to walk across the stage at commencement, the school on Monday reversed its decision.
The Brooklyn Cyclones hosted a “Jewish Celebration Day” at Maimonides Park on Sunday, featuring guest appearances by 18 Holocaust survivors from all over Kings County.
The city Health Department launched a new public education campaign on Monday, warning New Yorkers that drinking alcohol increases cancer risk.
Actor Steve Buscemi, an advisory council member of Friends of Firefighters, will participate in BTIG’s 20th annual Commissions for Charity fundraiser this Wednesday.
For the second consecutive year, Bay Ridge hosted “Pizza Wars,” a friendly but fierce competition. This year, 12 pizzerias competed to see who took the top slice or square.
Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu sprained her left ankle and had a sore foot after falling awkwardly following a reverse lay-up attempt in the third quarter.
Our World In Photos
Photo: Richard Drew/AP
NEW YORK — ‘It moves along the floor, it collects dust …’: Colin Angle, longtime CEO of Roomba vacuums, unveils a four-legged prototype of artificial pet Daphne, called a Familiar, at The WSJ Future of Everything, in New York, Monday, May 4, 2026.
For more pictures like this, see Our World in Photos.
Population of serious birders in Brooklyn is growing, becoming more diverse and political
The group gathers for a photo at the back corner of the courtyard of the Salt Marsh Nature Center. Photo: Loretta Chin/Brooklyn Eagle
Several birding clubs and organizations agreed that the influx of birders occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic when people sought a safe way to enjoy the outdoors and get out of their houses, but many things happened along the way to contribute to the growth.
Bird guides also reported that younger birders have become a part of the group walks, with many wanting to escape their screens and stress to be out in nature. Most agree that a lot of the new birders come via word-of-mouth, and interest grows organically.
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The Mini
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Cartoon Sketchbook
By Harley Schwadron
For the Road
Sacred Sites: Three churches in Brooklyn and the Green-Wood Cemetery are participating in this year’s Landmarks Conservancy 16th Annual Sacred Sites Open House. The Sacred Sites Weekend, May 16-17, is a free, statewide event, inviting visitors to explore the architecture, art and history of New York’s houses of worship. Participating sites will showcase their buildings, histories and community programs through guided tours, lectures and musical performances. Learn more.
Happy Birthday to pop superstar Adele!
On This Day in 1954, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “The Chelsea Soccer Club of London, member of the English League’s first division and one of the world’s glamor combinations, will be the fourth contingent of foreign booters to arrive here within a week when the two planes land them in New York tomorrow and Friday.”
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