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The FBI reported that Andrew Arrabaca doused the ground outside an employee entrance at 26 Federal Plaza with gasoline before setting it ablaze using a lighter and a large firework early on July 20. Federal agents and a protective services officer tackled the suspect shortly afterward as he allegedly continued to deploy fireworks and fire pellets from an airsoft gun in the direction of the building, according to Assistant Director in Charge James Barnacle. Three individuals sustained minor injuries in the confrontation, including a bystander who was grazed and a security officer involved in the detention, Barnacle told reporters at a news conference.
Arrabaca was armed with two axes, a machete, three knives and additional fireworks when authorities subdued him at the scene, the FBI assessment found. He made several anti-government and anti-ICE statements during the incident, which officials described as an attack on a federal facility. The Department of Homeland Security referred to him in a statement as an anti-ICE rioter.
According to military records cited by ABC News, Arrabaca served in the regular Army from 2001 to 2004 and in the New York Army National Guard from 2004 to 2005, working as a mechanic on Patriot missile systems without any overseas deployments before leaving as a specialist. CNN reported that the suspect carried anti-ICE material to the location, including a sign that read “ICE Off Our Streets.” He resides in New York state, with some accounts placing him in Poughkeepsie and others in Harlem.
The site at 26 Federal Plaza, which houses the FBI’s New York field office, Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations and an immigration court, has repeatedly drawn protests over federal immigration enforcement. ABC7 New York documented more than 20 arrests during anti-ICE demonstrations there in June 2025, while Reuters images from October 2025 captured further rallies demanding the release of migrants detained in raids. Officials have noted the location’s role as a flashpoint amid ongoing debates over immigration policy.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani described the event as deeply disturbing in a post on X. “Our administration will continue to ensure that every New Yorker is safe in their city – and hold accountable any who threaten that,” Mamdani stated. FBI Director Kash Patel announced via X that the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force had launched an investigation into the matter.
Barnacle characterized Arrabaca as an anti-American, anti-government extremist during the briefing. The fire was extinguished by the fire department without major structural damage to the building. Authorities placed the facility under a shelter-in-place order as a precaution while they secured the area.
