NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Manhattan officials gathered outside the Columbia University gates on Monday to demand the school and NYPD release any footage they have that is connected to the detention of a student by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents last week.
The officials, who included State Assemblyman Micah Lasher and Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal, called on Columbia to release any hallway security footage and for the NYPD to release any body camera footage from the scene Thursday morning, when Ellie Aghayeva was detained.
"All of this footage serves a critical public interest. We should all understand exactly what the ICE agents did to gain access to that building and abduct Ellie," Lasher said. "It is in the public interest to know how they lied, what they said, whether they presented false identification, whether they brandished a missing child poster, and all that happened leading up to the abduction."
Following her arrest, hundreds of students and community members gathered at Columbia in a peaceful protest condemning her detention.
Aghayeva, an international student from Azerbaijan, was released from custody hours after due to apparent intervention from President Donald Trump, who met with Mayor Zohran Mamdani that day.
The arrest occurred at about 6 a.m. Thursday when "five federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security, without any kind of warrant, entered an off-campus Columbia residential building," according to acting president of the university Claire Shipman.
"The agents gained entry by stating they were police searching for a missing child," Shipman's statement continued. "They made their way to the apartment of the student they were targeting with the same story. Our security cameras captured the agents in the hallway showing pictures of the alleged missing child."
NYPD officers responded to the building after a 911 call reported two suspicious men. After verifying the federal agents' status, the cops left the scene, the department said.
"Pursuant to federal law, the NYPD and civilians cannot interfere in federal operations," the NYPD said in a statement.
Both Columbia and the NYPD have declined requests to release footage from the incident.
The Department of Homeland Security has disputed parts of Columbia's narrative, claiming that the agents identified themselves, wore visible badges and were allowed into the building by the property manager.
"But we know that DHS has repeatedly lied about the conduct of federal officers," Lasher said.
According to court records, the case against Aghayeva has been dismissed.