Journalist Rushed to Hospital After Violent Clash with Federal Agents at Immigration Court

Chaos broke out inside a Manhattan immigration courthouse Tuesday when a clash between federal agents and members of the press left a journalist hospitalized and others shaken.

According to The New York Times, the incident unfolded on the 12th floor of 26 Federal Plaza as reporters were covering a routine immigration case. Dean Moses, a video journalist with amNewYork, said he began filming when two women and a group of masked agents entered an elevator. As he tried to follow, one of the agents cursed at him and shoved him back toward the hallway, where a dozen journalists were gathered.

“I walked into the elevator behind them, and they started screaming at me,” Moses told his outlet. “Then they pushed me, grabbed me by my arms, and started pulling me out. I tried to hold on, but I got shoved out.”

Witnesses say freelance photographer Olga Fedorova was also pushed to the floor, while a third journalist, L. Vural Elibol of the Turkish news agency Anadolu Ajansı, was found collapsed in the hallway. His camera lay beside him still recording as he moaned in pain and struggled to move.

“He was just laying down on the floor,” Elibol’s colleague Mostafa Bassim told The Times. “He couldn’t talk or, like, function at all.” Moses added that Elibol remained semiconscious and unable to move for nearly 40 minutes before being taken out on a stretcher.

Federal officials later confirmed that agents were making the arrest of a Peruvian national when the confrontation with journalists occurred. In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security accused “agitators and members of the press” of obstructing their work, insisting that officers gave repeated commands for people to step back.

But witnesses at the courthouse pushed back, saying the situation was confusing and escalated without warning. “If they tell us to get out, to not cross a certain line, we follow their orders,” Fedorova told the Associated Press. “In this case, it was not clear to anyone that this was a detention at all.”

The incident has already sparked political backlash. Governor Kathy Hochul blasted the federal agents in a post on X, saying they were abusing “law-abiding immigrants and the reporters telling their stories.” She added bluntly: “What the hell are we doing here?”

The case remains under investigation, while Elibol continues to recover after being rushed to the hospital. The clash has raised new questions about press freedoms inside federal buildings and the growing tension between journalists and immigration enforcement.