New York, New York - US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are accused of violating a recent court order by abducting a Honduran man from a courthouse in New York City on Tuesday morning.
ICE agents arrested and detained 21-year-old Honduran man Vinely Alexander Castillo-Norales on Tuesday morning at a courthouse at 26 Federal Plaza which was recently declared off-limits for immigration enforcement.
On Monday, District Judge P. Kevin Castel issued an order blocking federal agents from making arrests in or around three courthouses in Manhattan: 26 Federal Plaza, 201 Varick Street, and 290 Broadway.
The decision came off the back of months of fear and intimidation within several New York courthouses, where ICE would routinely abduct and detain migrants as they showed up for immigration hearings.
Castel railed against the practice in his ruling, declaring that people should be able to attend undergo the legal process "without fear of arrest."
Castillo-Norales' arrest came only a day after the ruling. His lawyers argued in a petition to the US District Court in Manhattan that "his arrest is in direct violation of an order in this court."
An investigation by the New York Times triggered a contradictory response from the Department of Homeland Security, which insisted that Castillo-Norales was a dangerous criminal and denied it had broken a court order. The agency also admitted he had been released from custody.
"ICE did NOT violate any court orders," the DHS said in a statement. "Nothing prohibits arresting a lawbreaker where you find them, especially illegal alien gang members."
26 Federal Plaza has become particularly notorious for such arrests, which are often violently conducted in the hallways outside the building's courtrooms.
Last year, shocking footage emerged from inside an ICE holding room on the building's 10th floor showing detainees confined in dangerous and unsanitary conditions.