Pro-Palestinian activist arrested at cop’s memorial?

United in Grief - City mourns slain immigrant cop

A police officer approaches heckler and pro-Palestinian activist Aldo Rafael Perez at a memorial service for slain NYPD Detective Didarul Islam outside of the 47th Precinct on Laconia Avenue on August 1. -Photo by David Greene

By David Greene 

Bronx Voice 

August 11, 2025

BRONX - A somber crowd estimated at 15,000 gathered in Parkchester to say goodbye to Detective First Grade Didarul Islam, 36, who was shot and killed after a deranged man entered a Midtown office building on July 28. Days after the first Muslim NYPD officer to be killed was laid to rest, a pro-Palestinian protester claimed he was arrested at Islam’s memorial—but the NYPD had no record of the arrest.

On July 31, members of multiple law enforcement agencies joined members of the NYPD, the Bangladeshi and Parkchester communities as they surrounded Islam’s family who silently walked behind the flag-draped casket. Officers carried Islam out of the Parkchester Jame Masjid on Virginia Avenue to the waiting hearse on White Plains Road.

Elected officials in attendance included Governor Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams, Borough President Vanessa Gibson, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, Congressman Adriano Espaillot, Congressman Ritchie Torres, Councilman Yousef Salaam and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

An NYPD officer (Left) and a man in traditional Jewish attire stand over several hundred Muslim men as they kneel in the street along Virginia Avenue as they mourn the death of fallen NYPD Detective First Grade Didarul Islam during his funeral service. -Photo by David Greene

Also in attendance or observed in the crowd were Mayoral candidates: current front-runner Zohran Mamdani (Democrat); current Mayor Eric Adams (Independent); Bronx activist Irene Estrada (Conservative Party); Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa (Republican) and former governor Andrew Cuomo (Independent.)

During the service, Tish announced that Islam would be posthumously promoted from police officer to Detective. Tisch said of Islam, “He stepped into a new land and chose to become part of its promise, to believe in its dream, and he did believe in the American dream not as something handed down, but as something built with your own hands.”

According to the NYPD, Islam was off-duty but on an NYPD-approved assignment when he and three others were shot and killed as the deranged gunman with a semi-automatic weapon sought to kill employees of the National Football League. Police say the gunman walked into the office building and started shooting before eventually taking his own life.

Tisch mentioned that the day before Islam was killed, he worked the Bronx Dominican Day Parade along the Grand Concourse, as this year’s parade was particularly violent as several people were shot, multiple fights broke out along the parade route and multiple arrests were reported.

Nearly a dozen attempts were made with neighbors of Islam’s tight-knit Bangladeshi community who refused to say anything about the man until one woman broke the silence. The woman said, “It was a shocking event for the neighborhood and the community, and I think even for people who didn’t know him, it was still really shocking to them.”

She added, “And as a Muslim officer, like people always see Muslims as the problem in a lot of places, so I feel it was eye-opening for people to see that it was a Muslim defending the city and I just think it shows a lot.”

WAS HECKLER ARRESTED AT MEMORIAL?

Meanwhile, a pro-Palestinian heckler claims he was arrested as he attempted to shout down U.S. Congressman Ritchie Torres, as Torres spoke at a memorial service for Islam held at the 47^th Precinct on Laconia Avenue on August 1. Despite being provided with video of the arrest as well as a summons number—the Bronx Voice was told that the NYPD had no record of the arrest.

In video obtained by the Bronx Voice as well as a video posted to social media by longtime advocate and Puerto Rican Muslim Aldo Rafael Perez, shows Perez heckling Torres when he is quickly surrounded by several uniformed police officers. As he was being escorted out of the area of the memorial, Perez looked back at Torres at the podium and screamed, “Zionist! You F---ing Zionist!”

In Perez’ video that was shot with the phone in “zoom” mode from when Perez was videotaping Torres moments earlier, it appeared that Perez was pushed into another officer. At one point a scuffle ensued when an officer shouted “92” that was repeated by other officers that apparently referred to the NYPD’s Ten Code, as 10-92 is a call of a crime or an arrest.

Along with the video posted to Facebook of his apparent arrest, Perez, the recently named vice president of governmental affairs at the Muslim and Immigrant Coalition for Justice, wrote of Torres, “He has been an adamant supporter of Israel’s Zionist narcissistic regime that has paid him well over $1.5 million to continue a genocide in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon.”

After being told by an NYPD official that no arrests took place during Islam’s memorial. The official was then sent the sourced video and a link to Perez’ video both showing the arrest as well as a photo of Perez’ summons. The official never responded. A search of the New York State Unified Court System’s website also showed, “No cases found.” But noted that cases could take “weeks” to be listed in the database.

After repeated emails and calls to Torres’ Bronx office, the Bronx Voice was unable to get a comment on the incident from Torres.