Arson charge filed against former Army soldier after Manhattan federal building attack

An arson charge was filed Tuesday against a 43-year-old former Army soldier accused of setting a sidewalk fire outside a Manhattan federal building that houses immigration court proceedings. Andrew Arrabaca was charged in Manhattan federal court one day after the July 20 attack at 26 Federal Plaza.

Authorities said he dragged a cart with a sign reading "ICE Off Our Streets" to an employee entrance, ignited a large firework, fired airsoft pellets at the building, and set gasoline ablaze on the sidewalk.

details Two Federal Protective Service officers and a security contractor subdued Arrabaca. The building is two blocks from the courthouse and has been a site of protests against immigration enforcement policies. Officials said Arrabaca wore a military-style helmet during the incident.

He was a Harlem and Poughkeepsie resident and had served in the Army from 2001 to 2005 repairing Patriot missile systems, leaving as a specialist with no deployments.

items recovered Two government employees, one civilian heading to immigration court, and one bystander were injured. Only one person required hospital treatment for non-life-threatening injuries. Authorities recovered two axes, three fixed-blade knives, a hammer, a machete, and the pellet gun from Arrabaca.

An FBI official said Arrabaca made anti-government statements during his arrest and told investigators he did not care if people were killed. The FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating, though the attack has not been classified as terrorism.