Top NYPD cop pepper-sprays himself breaking up anti-Israel protest on Manhattan Bridge
A top NYPD officer was seemingly caught on camera accidentally pepper-spraying himself while trying to break up an anti-Israel demonstration on the Manhattan Bridge Saturday.
Video shared on social media shows NYPD Assistant Chief James McCarthy getting a faceful of the chemical irritant as he tried to deploy it on protesters who brought traffic to a standstill as they marched across the bridge Saturday evening.
Cops in riot gear can be seen in the chaotic footage trying to wrangle protesters who are falling over each other as they back away chanting, “Rafah!”
The group of protesters, some carrying signs reading “Palestine will be free,” appear to have their arms linked together while backing away from police.
Toward the end of the clip, which had been viewed over 230,000 times Sunday morning, McCarthy can be seen alongside three protesters pulling pepper spray out of his pocket and accidentally spraying himself.
Photographs show McCarthy wearing a white uniform while other officers dump a bottle of water over his shocked face.
Several other officers can be seen tending to his injuries following the accident.
Other clips shared online showed the large crowd slowly marching across the span chanting, “We don’t want your f–king war,” according to one X post, while cops gathered on the Manhattan side, eventually meeting the group and trying to round them up.
About 150 people were arrested during the demonstration Saturday evening, an NYPD spokesperson told The Post on Sunday.
The NYPD did not immediately return The Post’s request for comment regarding McCarthy’s pepper-spray incident.
