FBI identifies Army veteran in Manhattan federal building explosion, anti-ICE motive suspected

The FBI identified the man taken into custody after the explosion outside 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan as a 43-year-old U.S. Army veteran, as investigators examined an incendiary device at the downtown federal building. Law enforcement officials said the suspect carried anti-ICE literature and described him as an “anti-government extremist.”

FBI officials said the blast unfolded after the suspect poured gasoline on the ground, ignited it with a lighter and a “large firework in a canister,” then pulled out an airsoft rifle. The device set off smoke outside the federal building in New York City, and officers took the man into custody after the explosion. The incident was treated as an incendiary attack rather than a conventional bomb case.

26 Federal Plaza sits in the heart of Manhattan’s federal office district, where a security event quickly becomes a federal matter. The sequence of gasoline, ignition source and a mock rifle raised immediate concern for investigators focused on motive, target selection and whether the suspect had moved from rhetoric to action.

Authorities have not tied the case to a confirmed broader plot, but the anti-ICE material put immigration enforcement at the center of the investigation. The veteran’s military background also adds another layer to the threat assessment, since federal investigators often look at access to weapons training, service history and prior behavior when they try to map escalation points.

The Manhattan explosion comes amid heightened attention to politically motivated threats in New York City. Recent federal and Justice Department investigations have included a March 2026 explosive-device inquiry at Gracie Mansion and charges against two men accused in an ISIS-inspired protest bomb attempt, cases that have sharpened scrutiny of suspicious devices and ideologically driven violence.