New York City investigates mysterious nighttime manhole entries in Brooklyn, Queens

Security cameras have caught multiple groups slipping into New York City’s sewer system at night, turning a street-level nuisance into a public-safety and infrastructure puzzle. In Brooklyn and Queens, investigators documented at least three separate incidents in which people entered or emerged from manholes, raising questions about who they were, what they were doing underground, and how easily they got access to a system meant to stay sealed.

One Brooklyn video showed roughly seven people coming up from a maintenance hole in Williamsburg, in the middle of an intersection, while wearing headlamps and carrying tools that appeared to include shovels. Another clip from Gravesend showed about seven people emerging around 2 a.m. and walking to parked cars, where they appeared to change into fresh clothes. A third incident, in Queens on May 5, showed three people in waterproof hip waders and other protective gear prying open a manhole cover and descending into the sewer system. Police have not announced any arrests or said what the groups were doing below ground.

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection said it inspected the Brooklyn sewer locations and found no damage to the infrastructure. Police said area sweeps did not turn up signs of a broader public safety threat. Still, the scenes underscored how little visibility city officials have once people disappear beneath the street, into a network of narrow, confined spaces where toxic gases, unstable surfaces and flooding can turn a descent into a fatal mistake. One report said the heavy steel covers can weigh about 200 to 300 pounds, depending on size and thickness.

The speculation has ranged from urban exploration to theft. One senior law-enforcement source described a leading theory that the group may have been searching for valuables that fall into the sewage system. Even without a confirmed motive, the episode has sharpened concern about access to the city’s underground infrastructure, especially after a separate manhole death in Midtown Manhattan. Donike Gocaj, 56, fell near Fifth Avenue and East 52nd Street on May 18, 2026, and the city medical examiner ruled the death an accident, citing scald burns with inhalation thermal injury and blunt force trauma. Con Edison said video suggested a multi-axle truck may have dislodged the cover, a reminder that the city’s sewer network can be both invisible and unforgiving.