The New York Immigration Coalition released on Monday dramatic images that show ICE agents pulling a man from a parked car in Brooklyn on Saturday in an operation that would later spark a massive protest outside Wyckoff Heights Medical Center.
As amNewYork reported, chaos unfolded on Saturday night outside the hospital in Bushwick after ICE agents brought an injured person into the emergency room, sparking fear and fury throughout the community. Word of the man’s arrest and hospitalization quickly spread, bringing scores of protesters to Wyckoff Hospital just before 10 p.m. A number of protesters and at least four NYPD officers were injured after, a law enforcement source said, an ICE agent unleashed pepper spray on the crowd during the unrest.
Still, the exact reason the detained man was brought to the medical center remained unclear until Monday. The footage that NYIC provided showed the man — whom the federal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has identified as Chidozie Wilson Okeke — screaming for mercy as several federal agents pulled him from the car earlier that day.
“I need to talk to my lawyer,” he yelled over and over again as a masked federal officer pointed a taser at him. “Somebody help me!”
The New York immigration coalition released on Monday dramatic images that show ICE agents pull a man from a parked car that would later spark a massive protest outside Wyckoff Hospital in Brooklyn.The New York immigration coalition 
An investigation is underway Sunday after chaos erupted outside a hospital in Brooklyn late on Saturday night when masked ICE agents brought a man there after arresting him in an apparent enforcement operation.Dakota Santiago/ FreedomNews.TV
The detained man continued to frantically scream as he was pulled from the vehicle and handcuffed on the ground, with one of the agents placing a knee on him. The same man was later, during the early hours of the morning, seen being dragged from the hospital by ICE agents after he was taken there for medical attention following the arrest.
“Every New Yorker, no matter when they arrived here, should feel safe to live their lives without being brutalized by masked ICE terrorists. On multiple occasions in recent months, ICE has put New Yorkers in the hospital through their violent and unlawful tactics – and DHS constantly lies to the American public to justify terrorizing, brutalizing, and even killing people. This weekend, when a New Yorker was put in the hospital by ICE – while he repeatedly asked to speak to his lawyer – they once again showed their disregard for the law and their disrespect for immigrant New Yorkers’ lives,” Murad Awawdeh, President and CEO of the New York Immigration Coalition said.
In response to the arrest, hundreds of New Yorkers arrived outside of Wyckoff Hospital, prompting a massive response from the NYPD and ending in nine people being taken into custody.
The response to latest ICE arrest
New Yorkers involved in the protest and several elected officials accused the NYPD of breaching sanctuary city laws by working with ICE agents.
On Monday, during another protest outside Wyckoff Heights Medical Center, elected officials including Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso condemned the police response, which included clearing the path for federal authorities.
“We are a sanctuary city, so we don’t want the NYPD helping ICE in any way, shape or form. We need to make sure that there’s no opportunity where there’s any collaboration with ICE and NYPD, we don’t want any assistance, don’t hold their doors, don’t push them through,” Reynoso charged. “This is a city that stands up for immigrants.”
On Monday politicians like Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, condemned the police response which included clearing the path for federal authorities.Photo by Dean Moses
An NYPD spokesperson told amNewYork that they had no prior notice of ICE enforcement and denied any collaboration, adding that they responded to 911 calls of a disorderly crowd. Mayor Zohran Mamdani echoed those comments on May 4 during an unrelated press conference in the Bronx.
“There was no prior coordination or planning between the NYPD and ICE ahead of this incident,” Mamdani said. “NYPD officers were not dispatched to the hospital to participate or facilitate an ICE operation.”
Mamdani added that city laws leave “no room for interpretation” — that the NYPD “will not participate in civil immigration enforcement.” He also criticized ICE raids broadly, calling them “cruel” and “inhumane.”
Asked about videos showing police force against protesters, Mamdani said he had seen one in which an officer was “grabbing a New Yorker and throwing them onto the floor.”
“That is incredibly disturbing, and that is being actively investigated right now,” he said.
In a follow-up, Mamdani said “there cannot be any work in coordination with ICE, in planning with ICE” and “there cannot be any assistance in civil immigration enforcement.” He said the city would continue reviewing response protocols when ICE is present.
Mamdani added that city laws leave “no room for interpretation,” that the NYPD “will not participate in civil immigration enforcement.” He also criticized ICE raids broadly, calling them “cruel” and “inhumane.”Photo by Lloyd Mitchell
DHS claims about detained man in Brooklyn
Meanwhile, the DHS made claims about the man ICE took into custody over the weekend, calling him a “criminal illegal alien” — their terminology for an undocumented person.
“During his arrest, Okeke refused to comply with officers’ lawful commands to exit the vehicle and weaponized his vehicle to attempt to hit ICE officers. Okeke became physically combative, attempting to punch and elbow ICE officers. Our officers followed their training and used the minimum amount of force necessary to make the arrest,” Homeland Security wrote on X. “After his arrest, Okeke requested medical assistance, so ICE officers escorted him to Wyckoff Heights Medical Center for a medical evaluation. Okeke remained non-compliant during the medical evaluation, throwing himself to the floor and screaming.”
The video release does not appear to show Okeke displaying the combative behavior that DHS claimed.
Brooklyn Council Member Sandy Nurse, who witnessed the May 2 protest, condemned ICE’s actions.
“They are spending billions of dollars on detention camps where families that are separated are being held in outrageous, inhumane conditions, all in the name of public safety. But what about the safety of access to health care? What about the safety of access to high-quality public education? What about the safety of affordable housing that’s safe and stable? We have to prioritize our community,” Nurse said.
Council Member Sandy Nurse, who witnessed the protest that night, condemned ICE for their actions.Photo by Dean Moses