Over the past few weeks, New York law enforcement has launched an active investigation after a string of surveillance and user-shared videos captured groups of unidentified individuals accessing the city’s extensive sewer network through open manholes. According to police sources cited by major U.S. media outlets, the intrusions have been documented across residential neighborhoods in both Brooklyn and Queens, with the people involved widely suspected of searching for discarded or lost valuables hidden beneath city streets.
Details from the released footage show one clear incident where multiple working-age men worked together to lift a heavy manhole cover before climbing down into the underground system, only reemerging several hours later to leave the area. Investigators have not yet confirmed whether all reported incidents are connected to the same group, or if multiple separate parties have been undertaking the unauthorized activity.
Officials from New York City’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) have issued a stark public warning about the risks and legal ramifications of this behavior, stressing that unpermitted entry to municipal sewer infrastructure is a criminal offense as well as a potentially fatal activity. A DEP spokesperson explained to the BBC that sewers carry a wide range of life-threatening hazards: toxic and combustible noxious gases that can overcome humans in seconds, uneven and unstable walking surfaces that can lead to catastrophic falls, sudden unexpected flood surges from storm runoff or wastewater flows, and the extreme confinement of underground pipes that makes rescue nearly impossible for anyone trapped. For all these critical safety reasons, the department urged members of the public to never attempt to access any part of the city’s drainage system, including pipes, drains, catch basins, manholes, or ocean outfalls.
Last week, the NYPD received formal public reports of several people removing manhole covers and descending into the sewers in one Queens neighborhood. Following the incident, the individuals departed the area in an unidentifiable vehicle to an unknown destination, NYPD representatives confirmed to the BBC. No injuries were reported in connection with the incident, no suspects have been taken into custody as of the latest update, and the inquiry remains open and active.
Police sources told CBS News, the BBC’s domestic U.S. partner, that the people captured on camera climbing out of sewer manholes are likely a mix of amateur “treasure hunters” and urban exploration enthusiasts who believe valuable items may be hidden or washed into the underground system. If apprehended and convicted, the intruders could face felony burglary charges under New York state law.