New York Police Department (NYPD) officers arrive to detain demonstrators during a protest over the fatal shooting of a man identified as Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in New York City, U.S., January 27, 2026. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
(New York, New York) – Dozens of anti-ICE protesters were arrested Tuesday night after forcing their way into the lobby of a Manhattan hotel and refusing to leave, prompting a major New York City Police Department response.
Police were called to the Hilton Garden Inn Tribeca around 6 p.m. after demonstrators occupied the lobby, blocked pedestrian traffic, and disrupted hotel operations. Videos posted to social media showed protesters chanting and holding signs inside the hotel while ignoring repeated orders to disperse.
The activist group Sunrise Movement claimed on X that the hotel was housing federal immigration officials, sparking the demonstration.
Footage from inside the hotel captured protesters chanting slogans including “No ICE, No KKK, No Fascist USA” and “ICE out of New York.” In a separate video, demonstrators were heard chanting “Kristi Noem will hang,” a direct threat aimed at Kristi Noem, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.
At approximately 8:20 p.m., an NYPD bus carrying arrested protesters departed the scene as remaining demonstrators chanted in support. Officers maintained a presence outside the hotel as the crowd gradually dispersed. Police have not yet released the total number of arrests or specific charges.
Despite the disruption, City Hall praised the demonstration. A spokesperson for Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the mayor “commends the protestors” and described Immigration and Customs Enforcement as a “rogue agency,” while also applauding the NYPD’s handling of what the administration labeled a “peaceful protest.”
The hotel takeover follows a string of escalating anti-ICE protests nationwide after the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti during an encounter with U.S. Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis over the weekend. Earlier this month, Renee Nicole Good was also fatally shot during a separate encounter with ICE officers in the same city.
On Monday, police in Minnesota arrested multiple protesters outside a hotel in Maple Grove after declaring an unlawful assembly, when demonstrators targeted a location where they believed a senior Border Patrol official was staying.
