A possible anti-ICE activist deployed an “incendiary device” outside 26 Federal Plaza on Foley Square in New York City on Monday, injuring two people as smoke spewed into the air, according to the head of the FBI and law enforcement sources.
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed on X that a suspect was taken into custody. A U.S. official told NBC News he had previously served in the Army and the National Guard.
Four sources identified the suspect as Andrew Arrabaca, 43. They said he may have emotional issues. It wasn’t immediately clear where he was from.
Patel said two minor injuries were reported, though the fire department has double that number.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani called the situation “deeply disturbing” in his own X post and said he was relieved no one was seriously hurt.
Much remains under investigation. According to the law enforcement sources, the preliminary probe suggested the man wheeled a cart of fireworks and flammable liquid to the scene and ignited it. He also had what appeared to be a few airsoft rifles, which are pellet- or BB-type rifles, the sources said.
Sources said the NYPD Bomb Squad was checking out his cart as a precaution.
Video shows smoke billowing from the ground outside the building, by Worth and Lafayette streets. Multiple officers are at the scene trying to assess the situation. Later, they appear to have a person on the ground.
26 Federal Plaza on Foley Square is the primary federal office complex in New York City. The 41-story building houses ICE offices, the FBI and other agencies.
Patel said the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating.
On Tuesday, Arrabaca was charged in Manhattan federal court with arson and detained pending trial.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Samantha Fry said Arrabaca had been planning the attack since January and scouted several locations in New York. He decided on 26 Federal Plaza on Foley Square because of the heavy foot traffic in the morning, Fry said.
After his arrest, Arrabaca admitted to the arson, telling law enforcement that he was, “well aware of the risk and that people would get hurt,” Fry said.
She said he was diagnosed with a mental health issue in 2020 and took medication for treatment. However, in 2021, he stopped taking the medication.
Arrabaca’s defense attorney urged the court to release him, so that he could receive care at a secure mental health wing of a veteran’s hospital, given the underlying mental health issue.
The magistrate judge sided with the government, saying the crime was “troubling,” given his planing and the timing of the attack. While detained, the judge ordered him to receive an expedited mental health evaluation.
