In a dramatic incident caught on video, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officers handcuffed an aide to Rep. Jerry Nadler on Wednesday inside his Manhattan district office, located in the same federal building as an immigration courthouse.
The video, shared with Gothamist and recorded by someone monitoring immigration court activity, shows DHS officers entering Nadler’s office and accusing staffers of “harboring rioters,” the outlet reported.
One staffer is seen in tears as she is handcuffed, while another officer attempts to enter a private area of the office, prompting a staff member to demand a warrant.
In the video, one officer is seen attempting to enter a private office as a staffer inside repeatedly asks to see a warrant. “I’m a federal officer. We’re here checking on something. We have the right to check,” the officer tells her.
In a statement, DHS said the woman seen being detained had blocked officers from conducting a security check prompted by reports of protesters inside the congressman’s office. Later that day, demonstrators gathered outside the federal building to protest U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Both Rep. Nadler’s office and a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security confirmed that the staff member was neither arrested nor charged with any crime. In a brief phone interview, the staffer who was handcuffed said “everything resolved” and declined to provide further details.
Nadler’s office did not comment on what prompted the incident, but two individuals who were at the courthouse monitoring ICE activity said the confrontation began after ICE officers allegedly threatened to arrest them and other advocates. A Nadler staffer then invited the group into the office, they said.
Nadler’s office is located on the sixth floor of the Varick Street federal building, which also houses the federal immigration court on the fifth floor, along with offices for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other federal agencies.
Robert Gottheim, Nadler’s co-chief of staff, confirmed that no arrest was made but declined to comment further on the unusual incident, which saw federal agents enter a congressional office, accuse staffers of criminal activity, and handcuff one aide.
The episode comes amid escalating tensions between Democratic lawmakers and the executive branch over immigration enforcement. Earlier this month, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and Rep. LaMonica McIver were arrested during protests outside the Delaney Hall immigration detention center in Newark.
Recent days have also seen a rise in arrests at immigration courthouses across the country. In January, the Trump administration announced it would no longer treat locations like courthouses and schools as “protected” sites exempt from immigration enforcement, as it moves forward with what it has called the largest deportation effort in U.S. history.
At another immigration court in New York City, located at 290 Broadway, ICE officers last week detained a 20-year-old Bronx high school student shortly after an immigration judge dismissed the student’s deportation case. According to the city’s education department, the Venezuelan student is the first New York City public school student detained by ICE during Trump’s second term.
Later that evening, around 6:30 p.m., police arrested nearly two dozen protesters accused of blocking traffic outside the Varick Street building, according to an NYPD spokesperson.
In the video showing the confrontation at Rep. Nadler’s office, the handcuffed staff member states that constituents were present for a scheduled meeting. Those individuals later identified themselves in interviews with Gothamist as immigrant rights advocates who had been monitoring activity in the building, including areas outside the federal immigration courtrooms.
The video does not show any interactions between Nadler’s staff and DHS officers prior to the moment the staffer was handcuffed.