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Authorities in New York detained nearly ten individuals over the weekend amid demonstrations against ICE, sparked by the detention of an undocumented immigrant facing charges of assault and drug possession.
The protests unfolded in Brooklyn’s Bushwick area following the apprehension of Chidozie Wilson Okeke, a Nigerian national with previous legal troubles, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
DHS reports that Okeke initially entered the United States on a tourist visa in 2023. However, he failed to depart by the February 26, 2024 deadline stipulated in his visa.
During a Saturday immigration enforcement operation, Okeke allegedly ignored ICE agents’ instructions to exit his vehicle and attempted to strike them with the car. He is further accused of engaging in physical altercations, reportedly throwing punches and elbows at the agents.
The tensions in Bushwick were fueled by Okeke’s arrest, drawing demonstrators to the scene.
“Our officers followed their training and used the minimum amount of force necessary to make the arrest,” DHS said in a statement.
After his arrest, Okeke was taken to Wyckoff Heights Medical Center for a medical evaluation. Okeke “remained non-compliant during the medical evaluation, throwing himself to the floor and screaming,” DHS said, adding that he was eventually cleared by medical staff.
Video shows ICE agents dragging Okeke out of the hospital following his medical evaluation.
During the medical evaluation, a crowd of anti-ICE protesters gathered outside the hospital. DHS says the group damaged several ICE vehicles and assaulted agents, causing minor injuries.
Video shows ICE agents dragging Chidozie Wilson Okeke out of the hospital following his medical evaluation. (FNTV)
The NYPD said officers responded to reports of disorderly protesters outside the hospital between Stanhope and Stockholm streets on Saturday at around 10:25 p.m. Officers reported observing several people acting disorderly, obstructing vehicle traffic and blocking emergency entrances and exits to the hospital.
Officers issued repeated verbal warnings for the protesters to disperse and return to the sidewalks, according to the department.
Nine people were then taken into custody, including eight who were arrested and charged with resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief, the NYPD said. One person was issued a summons and released.
Nine protesters were then taken into custody, including eight who were arrested and charged. (FNTV)
The NYPD said it does not participate in civil immigration enforcement and had no prior awareness of the ICE operation.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani told a Gothamist reporter after the incident on Saturday that ICE raids are “cruel and inhumane” and “they do nothing to serve in the interest of public safety, and I’ve said that even directly to the president.”Â
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