Army veteran attacks federal building in New York City; 3 injured

A U.S. Army veteran set fire outside 26 Federal Plaza in New York City and fired an Airsoft rifle in its direction before he was subdued by officers, injuring three people, according to officials.

The attack happened at about 8:30 a.m. Monday outside 26 Federal Plaza in Lower Manhattan. The building houses offices for the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, as well as a federal immigration court.

Police said Andrew Arrabaca, 43, arrived with a cart and ignited a bundle of fireworks before taking out an Airsoft rifle and firing several pellets.

Arrabaca then removed an orange bucket from the cart, ran toward bushes along the building and poured a flammable liquid onto the ground before setting it on fire, according to New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch.

Two Federal Protective Service officers and a security contractor subdued Arrabaca before an FBI agent helped place him in handcuffs. One civilian and two government employees suffered minor injuries.

The civilian was an immigrant who was scheduled to attend a hearing on their immigration status, according to James Barnacle, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York office.

A search of Arrabaca’s belongings uncovered two Airsoft rifles, two axes, a hammer, a machete, three fixed-blade knives, six fireworks or incendiary devices and other destructive items. He was wearing a military-style helmet and had a sign reading “ICE off our streets” attached to his cart.

“His goal was to target the building,” Barnacle said. “He said he was okay if he hurt or killed people going in and out of the building, whether they were federal employees or civilians.”

Arrabaca, who previously lived in Harlem and is from Poughkeepsie, served in the U.S. Army from 2001 until 2005 as a repairman for Patriot missile systems.

Officials said Arrabaca traveled by subway from Harlem to the area near Penn Station on Sunday before walking south and spending the night on the street near the Holland Tunnel. He arrived near Federal Plaza at about 5 a.m. Monday and approached the building shortly after 8 a.m.

Arrabaca remains in federal custody and has been interviewed. His black Toyota RAV4 was found near West 124th Street and Broadway in Harlem and has been seized pending a search warrant.

The FBI, the New York Police Department and the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force are investigating. Charges had not yet been filed.