Veteran accused of arson at Manhattan ICE building enters not-guilty plea
A 43-year-old former Army serviceman pleaded not guilty to a single arson charge for setting a fire outside a federal immigration facility in Manhattan.
On July 20, Andrew Arrabaca, a 43-year-old U.S. Army veteran, is accused of pouring gasoline on the pavement outside the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building, setting it alight, and throwing fireworks that detonated, producing a plume of black smoke. Prosecutors claim he also fired a BB gun toward the building and carried a metal cart bearing anti-government literature, including a sign demanding ICE be removed from the streets.
Arrested on site, Arrabaca entered a not-guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil, a Trump appointee, after a federal magistrate denied him bail and ordered a mental-health assessment at the Metropolitan Detention Center. Evidence recovered from his cart included two axes and a machete, and investigators highlighted extensive surveillance footage. The case is slated for a hearing on December 15, when a trial date will be set. Officials have described the incident as extremist-motivated, linking it to broader tensions surrounding ICE’s presence at 26 Federal Plaza.
Why it matters
The case highlights security concerns at a high-profile immigration facility and raises questions about mental-health treatment for defendants.
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