'Anti-ICE' Army veteran set fire outside Manhattan federal building, say officials - BBC

What the report says

BBC News reported that federal authorities arrested Andrew Arrabaca, a 43-year-old former US Army soldier, after officials said he started a fire outside 26 Federal Plaza in lower Manhattan on Monday morning. The building houses offices for the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and US Citizenship and Immigration Services.

According to the FBI account cited by the BBC, Arrabaca allegedly fired several pellets from an airsoft gun toward the building, launched fireworks and poured an accelerant on entrance steps before the blaze was extinguished by the fire department. FBI New York Assistant Director James Barnacle said agents found him armed with two axes, a machete, three knives and fireworks. Federal agents tackled and detained him at the scene.

Officials said three people had minor injuries, including two government employees and an immigrant who was at the building for a status hearing. The Department of Homeland Security described Arrabaca as an “anti-ICE rioter,” while the FBI said he made anti-government and anti-ICE remarks during the incident. Barnacle also characterized him as an anti-government extremist. The BBC said it had sought comment from DHS.

The BBC, citing its US partner CBS, reported that Arrabaca is from Poughkeepsie, New York, and served in the regular Army from 2001 to 2004 and in the New York Army National Guard from 2004 to 2005, leaving as a specialist with no deployments. The incident comes as 26 Federal Plaza has become a focus of demonstrations over President Donald Trump’s immigration policies. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani called the episode deeply disturbing and said the city would work to keep residents safe and hold offenders accountable.