{"id":146461,"date":"2026-02-26T19:48:13","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T19:48:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/146461\/"},"modified":"2026-02-26T19:48:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T19:48:13","slug":"nyc-punk-arrested-in-nypd-snowball-attack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/146461\/","title":{"rendered":"NYC punk arrested in NYPD snowball attack"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the hooligans who allegedly pelted NYPD cops with snowballs in a rowdy free-for-all at Washington Square Park<\/a> has been unmasked \u2014 as a 27-year-old punk who was arrested for attempted robbery just weeks ago, police said.<\/p>\n

Gusmane Coulibaly was cuffed on Thursday in connection to the Monday afternoon mayhem that sent two uniformed cops to the hospital<\/a>, authorities said.<\/p>\n

Cops didn\u2019t immediately say what he was charged with.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t Coulibaly\u2019s first run-in with the law. <\/p>\n

The NYPD released an image of Gusmane Coulibaly, who was arrested in connection with pummeling NYPD officers with snowballs earlier this week. DCPI<\/p>\n

He was arrested for attempted robbery\u00a0in a Bronx subway station\u00a0less than three weeks ago, cops and sources said.<\/p>\n

Coulibaly was one of four suspects pictured in surveillance photos released by the NYPD a day after video of the \u201csnow\u201d-commotion went viral on social media.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The three others remain at large<\/a>, police said.<\/p>\n

The NYPD Police Benevolent Association president applauded the arrest, and took a\u00a0swipe at Mayor Zohran Mamdani<\/a>, who previously brushed\u00a0off\u00a0the snowball bombardment as a group of kids goofing off.<\/p>\n

\u201cA 27-year-old is not a \u2018kid,\u2019 @NYCMayor,\u201d the union posted on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis individual is an adult with a recent attempted robbery arrest, and your message was that it\u2019s OK for him to assault police officers for doing their job. This arrest sends a different message. We\u2019re grateful to all who have worked so hard on this case. There is more work to be done\u00a0to hold accountable all who participated in this shameful attack.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coulibaly\u2019s last brush with the law came on Feb. 6, when he allegedly stormed up to a straphanger in the Fordham Road station and demanded, \u201cRun everything in your pockets. You don\u2019t want this to get physical,\u201d according to the criminal complaint.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He was arrested and charged with attempted robbery, attempted petit larceny and harassment, the court doc said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

NYPD officers are pelted with snowballs in Washington Square Park on Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. FNTV<\/p>\n

NYPD officers covered in snow in Washington Square Park on Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. FNTV<\/p>\n

He pleaded not guilty and was released on his own recognizance by Judge Tara Collins. He is due back in court for that case on March 15.<\/p>\n

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch previously described the icy incident in the Greenwich Village park as \u201ccriminal\u201d and \u201cdisgraceful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mamdani<\/a> said on Tuesday that he had \u201cseen the videos\u201d but downplayed it as just \u201ckids throwing snowballs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mayor Zohran Mamdani was slammed for his comments downplaying the attack. @NYCMayor\/X<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve seen the videos of kids throwing snowballs at NYPD officers in Washington Square Park,\u201d he posted on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cOfficers, like all city workers, have been out in a historic blizzard, keeping New Yorkers safe and cars moving. Treat them with respect. If anyone\u2019s catching a snowball, it\u2019s me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hizzoner then doubled down during a later news conference, insisting the culprits were \u201ckids,\u201d despite footage appearing to show adults.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can just tell you from the video I saw, it looked like kids in a snowball fight,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

NYPD officers watch as snowballs are thrown at them in Washington Square Park on Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. Derek French\/SOPA Images\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve said time and time again that I, having seen these videos, to me it was a snowball fight that got out of hand and it should be treated accordingly,\u201d the mayor insisted.<\/p>\n

Tisch\u00a0told The Post Wednesday<\/a>, after a meeting with Mamdani administration officials, that she had spoken with the mayor about the snowy skirmish, and that \u201cthe investigation is ongoing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

She reiterated her no-nonsense stance on the snowballers \u2013 or anyone who puts cops in harm\u2019s way.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll say, as to anyone looking to do harm to the police, my message is very clear: I am a protective Jewish mother. Don\u2019t mess with my cops,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

An NYPD vehicle covered in snow after a mob pelted officers with snowballs. Derek French\/SOPA Images\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

In a Tuesday statement, Sergeants Benevolent Association President Vincent Vallelong joined the chorus of voices condemning the rogue winter warriors \u2013 and elected officials including the mayor who \u201cwere so silent after this incident occurred.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen individuals choose to turn a park into a launching ground for attacks on police, they cross a clear line,\u201d he wrote. \u201cToday it is snowballs. Tomorrow it could be rocks, bottles, or worse.\u201d<\/p>\n

But many New Yorkers and others believed the cops\u2019 and their boosters\u2019 reactions were a bit overheated and oversensitive.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday it is snowballs. Tomorrow it could be anvils, a piano that falls on your head and makes your teeth turn into its keys, a photorealistic tunnel and roadway painted on a brick wall, or worse,\u201d one X user mockingly responded to the sergeants\u2019 union.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Russian people were more stoic about Stalingrad during the Nazi siege than the NYPD is about a snowball fight,\u201d Jeet Heer, a writer with The Nation, a prominent lefty magazine, posted on X.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"One of the hooligans who allegedly pelted NYPD cops with snowballs in a rowdy free-for-all at Washington Square…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":146462,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[101,57,9,24,55,54,56,103,8555,60636,58,15081,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-146461","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-city","8":"tag-arrest","9":"tag-metro","10":"tag-new-york","11":"tag-new-york-city","12":"tag-new-york-city-headlines","13":"tag-new-york-city-news","14":"tag-ny","15":"tag-nypd","16":"tag-snow","17":"tag-snowball","18":"tag-us-news","19":"tag-washington-square-park","20":"tag-zohran-mamdani"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146461","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=146461"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146461\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/146462"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=146461"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=146461"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=146461"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}