About 14 anti-ICE protesters were taken into custody Wednesday after a group of demonstrators blocked the Manhattan side of the Brooklyn Bridge at midday and left commuters stuck in gridlock, according to the NYPD and multiple New York outlets.
Police responded at about 12:34 p.m. to reports of roughly 30 protesters on the outbound side of the bridge who were blocking both vehicle and pedestrian traffic, News 12 reported, citing the NYPD. The New York Daily News reported that the group formed a line across the Brooklyn-bound lanes around 12:35 p.m. and that at least 14 people were taken into custody after refusing repeated orders to disperse.
NOW: Drivers REACT as Anti-ICE Protesters block ALL Entrances to the Brooklyn Bridge on Manhattan side. pic.twitter.com/Jv3lc71oev
— Oliya Scootercaster 🛴 (@ScooterCasterNY) October 28, 2026
The NYPD confirmed to Fox News Digital that 14 people were arrested and that no injuries were reported. According to News 12, police said the demonstrators were taken into custody without incident, and it was not yet clear what charges they would face. ABC7 New York reported that officials reopened all lanes shortly before 1:30 p.m.
Drivers stuck in the standoff
Video shared widely on X showed frustrated drivers arguing with protesters who would not let them pass. One man in the footage said, “It’s not fair. We’re down with it, but it’s not fair,” according to the New York Daily News. Fox News reported that another driver was heard saying, “I just want to get to work!”
The New York Post reported that some demonstrators sat cross-legged on the roadway and chanted “NYPD, KKK, ICE, they’re all the same!” The Post also reported that activists wore shirts reading “Have you seen my neighbor?” and “Sanctuary Campus Now.” According to the Daily News, two protesters held a large yellow banner that read “Stop Shooting Us.”
What the protest was about
Demonstrators said the action was a response to an ICE shooting in the Marble Hill area earlier this month and that they wanted ICE to leave New York City, ABC7 reported. The Daily News reported that the protest centered on Oscar Belgal, who was wounded in the neck on Oct. 8 when ICE agents fired at the SUV he was driving in the Bronx while his 5-year-old son was in the back seat. The child was not hurt, according to the Daily News.
Federal officials have said Belgal drove toward agents, a claim his lawyers dispute, according to reporting on the incident. The Daily News reported that Belgal is in the country illegally and has an arrest record that includes two arrests in the past three years, and that his attorneys are seeking his release from federal custody, arguing agents lacked a valid warrant.
A city on edge over sanctuary policy
The bridge shutdown came as New York’s sanctuary policies face renewed scrutiny from federal officials. Fox News reported that it had reached out to the mayor’s office for comment and noted that city leaders had stayed quiet on the bridge protest and on a separate case this week in which Port Authority Police say a man spray-painted over victims’ names at the 9/11 Memorial.
For the commuters who sat on the approach to one of the country’s most famous crossings for roughly an hour, the debate over immigration enforcement was less abstract. Police have not yet released the charges against those taken into custody, and Daily Beltway will update this story when they do.
Sources
- ABC7 New York
- News 12
- New York Daily News (via ArcaMax)
- New York Post
- Fox News
- Video: @ScooterCasterNY on X
Sources cited
- https://abc7ny.com/post/brooklyn-bridge-protesters-shut-down-traffic-marble-hill-ice-shooting/19990396/
- https://longisland.news12.com/2026/10/28/anti-ice-protesters-block-brooklyn-bridge-traffic-multiple-taken-into-custody/6JK8ZLhiF6bIzjpdIOCvBI
- https://www.arcamax.com/currentnews/newsheadlines/s-4332345
- https://nypost.com/2026/10/28/us-news/anti-ice-protesters-in-nyc-arrested-after-blocking-brooklyn-bridge-traffic/
- https://www.foxnews.com/us/radicals-bring-life-americas-largest-city-screeching-halt-vandalize-911-memorial
Sources
- Original post: Oliya Scootercaster 🛴 (@ScooterCasterNY) on X, Oct 28, 2026
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