Two Columbia University janitors who say they were held hostage during the violent takeover of a campus building last spring have filed a federal lawsuit against their alleged captors, accusing them of assault, battery, and conspiracy to violate their civil rights.
The suit, reviewed exclusively by The Free Press, was filed late Friday by Torridon Law and the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law on behalf of janitors Mario Torres and Lester Wilson. It alleges that more than 40 individuals — Columbia students and outside activists — terrorized the two men during the April 29, 2024, occupation of Hamilton Hall, physically assaulted them, detained them against their will, and hurled antisemitic slurs at them.
According to the lawsuit, both Torres and Wilson suffered physical injuries and continue to experience post-traumatic stress disorder, requiring ongoing treatment. Neither has returned to work, and both are currently surviving on workers’ compensation payments, which the suit describes as “inadequate” in covering basic living expenses and medical bills.
“Mario and Lester are decent, honest, hardworking men who have been through hell. None of this ever should have happened,” said Tara Helfman, one of the attorneys representing the janitors.
The lawsuit describes the protesters — many of whom allegedly wore masks and hoods to hide their identities. It asserts that the occupiers were part of a broader, loosely organized pro-Hamas and anti-Israel network that resorts to violence and intimidation tactics motivated by antisemitic hatred.
In a parallel legal move, the Brandeis Center also filed a federal lawsuit Friday on behalf of two students, a professor, and a rabbi at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). That case alleges that several groups, including National Students for Justice in Palestine and American Muslims for Palestine, coordinated a campaign of exclusion, intimidation, and assault to target Jewish students and faculty.
Among those named in Torres and Wilson’s suit are members of Columbia’s most prominent anti-Israel groups, including Columbia University Apartheid Divest, Students for Justice in Palestine, and Jewish Voices for Peace. The suit also names outside activists not affiliated with Columbia, including James Carlson — described by the New York Post as a “longtime anarchist” and the son of wealthy parents — and Lisa Fithian, a veteran protest organizer. The People’s Forum, a far-left activist group linked to multiple anti-Israel protests across New York City, is also listed as a defendant.
Although more than 40 protesters were arrested after the Hamilton Hall occupation, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office later dropped the charges, citing challenges in prosecuting masked individuals and damaged surveillance equipment.
While neither Torres nor Wilson is Jewish, the lawsuit argues that antisemitism played a central role in the ordeal, with protesters allegedly assuming the janitors supported Jews and viewing them as obstacles to their plan.
The complaint provides detailed accounts of the events that night. Both janitors were working the third floor of Hamilton Hall when masked demonstrators armed with rope, zip ties, and crowbars forcibly entered. During the chaos, Torres was approached by rioters who offered him cash and told him the protest was “bigger than you.” When he resisted and demanded to leave, they allegedly refused, mocked him as a “Jew-lover,” and escalated threats of violence. One activist, later identified as Carlson, allegedly shoved Torres and threatened to rally others to assault him.
Photographs of Torres struggling with Carlson circulated widely online following the occupation. Torres told The Free Press he feared for his life and worried he might have to escape by jumping from a window.
Wilson, meanwhile, was cleaning a bathroom when he encountered masked individuals barricading exits with furniture. After he refused to leave voluntarily, he was reportedly shoved and rammed with furniture.
The exits to the building were blocked with tables, vending machines, bike locks, and zip ties, according to the lawsuit, leaving both men trapped inside and fearing for their safety throughout the night.
The suit claims the occupation was premeditated and organized by activist groups. It describes how The People’s Forum allegedly hosted a volunteer meeting hours earlier, where participants finalized plans to storm Hamilton Hall. Supplies, including rope, food, cots, and zip ties, were allegedly distributed at the meeting, and some materials were reportedly purchased using funds from the Westchester People’s Action Coalition.
At 11:27 p.m., The People’s Forum posted a call to action on social media, urging supporters to “mobilize to Columbia now,” an hour before the break-in began.
The protesters’ tactics, the lawsuit claims, followed methods outlined in an activist guide titled Palestine Action: The Underground Manual, which instructs demonstrators on how to surveil target buildings, disable security, and conduct forced occupations.
Although Fithian did not enter Hamilton Hall, the lawsuit alleges she provided strategic guidance on how to seize and barricade the building, drawing from her long career training protest groups.
Meanwhile, the separate UCLA lawsuit filed under the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 alleges that anti-Israel groups deliberately coordinated to intimidate and harm Jewish students and faculty through tactics like setting up encampments and “autonomous zones” intended to exclude and threaten Jewish individuals.
Ken Marcus, founder of the Brandeis Center, emphasized that these lawsuits mark a strategic shift from targeting universities for allowing antisemitism to suing the individuals and groups allegedly responsible.
“Too often, the mainstream media portrays these activists as peaceful protesters,” Marcus said. “But these cases show organized, violent efforts to promote a terrorist agenda. This isn’t about free speech — it’s about stopping the violence being unleashed on our campuses when administrators turn a blind eye.”