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Large groups of men twice seen climbing in and out of manholes in Brooklyn for unknown reason

Nypost · · 514 words · By Tina Moore; Sofia Poznansky
Public safety Community Vulnerability Urban Crime/Trespassing
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What to know about Public safety

Large groups of men twice seen climbing in and out of manholes in Brooklyn for unknown reason See more of our coverage in your search results.

Claims checked 8
Techniques found 3
Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center67%
Right33%

3 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Large groups of men twice seen climbing in and out of manholes in Brooklyn for unknown reason See more of our coverage in your search results.

Why it matters

Add The New York Post on GoogleNew York City might have a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle problem.

Common ground

Trespassers were seen climbing into an open manhole on a Brooklyn street early Friday morning not once, but twice, cops said.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Appeal to Fear, Exaggeration / Hyperbole: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/05/30/us-news/its-a-bizarre-incident-senators-aide-says/

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 3 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning
Loaded Language 80% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.
Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.
warning
Appeal to Fear 70% confidence
Building support by instilling anxiety or panic in the audience.
Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.
Why it matters: Recognizing appeal to fear helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.
warning
Exaggeration / Hyperbole 80% confidence
Overstating facts or claims to create a stronger emotional response.
Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.
Why it matters: Recognizing exaggeration / hyperbole helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 8 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

info Single Source 4
check_circle Corroborated 4
info
Claim 1: “Later, a crew from the city Department of Environmental Protection was seen working at the site of the Gravesend incident.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence mentions the Gravesend incident and the removal of a manhole cover, but does not explicitly corroborate the presence of a DEP crew working at the site in the provided snippets.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — New York, often called New York City (NYC), [b] is the most populous city in the United States. It is located at the southern tip of New York State on New York Harbor, one of the world's largest natur…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The term borough was adopted in 1898 to describe a form of governmental administration for each of the five fundamental constituent parts of the newly consolidated city. Under the 1898 City Charter ad…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boroughs_of_New_York_City
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In the footage of the Gravesend incident obtained by the Flatbush Scoop, a man is seen removing a manhole cover from McDonald Avenue and stashing it on the curb between parked cars.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/mystery-of-nyc-manhole-…
info
Claim 2: “The NYPD’s Emergency Services Unit did a sweep of the sewers and found nothing, another spokesman said.”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the NYPD and its Emergency Services Unit are real entities, the provided evidence does not contain the specific detail that a sweep was conducted and found nothing.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — New York City Police Department ... The City of New York Police Department, also known as the New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Establ…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_Police_Departmen…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Band of the City of New York Police Department (commonly branded as the NYPD Police Band) the primary musical unit of the NYPD. Composed of 70 members, it is part of the Ceremonial Unit and likewi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organization_of_the_New_York_C…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Welcome to the official NYPD website In recent years, the department has increased its focus on transparency and accessibility. As you navigate our website, you will have access to disciplinary record…
https://nypdonline.org/
info
Claim 3: “The incidents happened the same month Westchester grandmother Donike Gocaj, 56, fell into an open manhole to her death in Midtown, Manhattan.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided evidence for this claim is completely irrelevant (discussing AI models like Claude), and there is no mention of Donike Gocaj or a manhole accident in the search results.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Anthropic的Claude订阅也是一个道理，Pro 20美元一个月，Max 100-200美元一个月，使用额度也是有上限的，但是对于绝大部分人（在用OpenClaw之前）这些额度也够用，实际上大部分人也用不完，这些人就相当于办了年卡但不是经常去的人。
https://www.zhihu.com/question/2023715723785061711
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Mar 5, 2024 · Claude是一款备受海外创作者和开发者喜爱的AI工具，在长文本处理和复杂推理方面表现卓越，其3.7Sonnet版本在代码能力方面尤为突出。
https://www.zhihu.com/question/647213074
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Claude很聪明，识别出了Roo code和Supabase的拼写错误，甚至指出了原作者的一些错误。 我测试了ChatGPT、grok3，Google Gemini，都没能正确识别出Roo code。 在Claude纠错后，可以继续要求它写一篇改进稿，并要求改进稿和原告一样内容完整和详实。 这里我就不演示了。
https://www.zhihu.com/question/13298949447
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Claim 4: “Trespassers were seen climbing into an open manhole on a Brooklyn street early Friday morning not once, but twice, cops said.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web search results confirm that police are investigating two separate incidents of people entering manholes in Brooklyn on a Friday morning.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Blue Bloods is an American police procedural drama television series that aired on CBS from September 24, 2010, to December 13, 2024, across 14 seasons and 293 episodes. Its main characters are the fi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Bloods
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Brooklyn Heights is a residential neighborhood within the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Old Fulton Street near the Brooklyn Bridge on the north, Cadman Plaza West o…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Heights
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Brooklyn Nine-Nine is an American police procedural sitcom that aired on Fox from September 17, 2013, to May 20, 2018, and later on NBC, from January 10, 2019, to September 16, 2021, for eight seasons…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Nine-Nine
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 5: “At about 2 a.m., a group of men was captured on video removing a manhole cover and descending into the sewer about five miles away at McDonald Avenue and Collin Place in Gravesend, according to cops.”
CORROBORATED
Web search results confirm a second incident involving a group of men entering a manhole at McDonald Avenue and Colin Place in Gravesend, with video evidence mentioned.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — In the early 2020s, the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Minnesota experienced a wave of civil unrest, comprising peaceful demonstrations and riots, against systemic racis…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020–2023_Minneapolis–Saint_Pa…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The aftermath of the George Floyd protests in Minneapolis–Saint Paul describes the result of civil disorder between May 26 and June 7, 2020, in the Twin Cities metropolitan area of the U.S. state of M…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aftermath_of_the_George_Floyd_…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Dallas is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. Located in northern Texas, it is the ninth-most populous city in the United States and third-most populous city in Texas, with a population of 1.3 million …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 6: “They were caught on video climbing out of the manhole around 3:40 a.m. and taking off in a vehicle, police said.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm that video footage shows individuals exiting a manhole around 3:40 a.m. and leaving in a vehicle.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Video is an electronic medium used for the recording, copying, playback, transmission, and display of moving visual images and pictures, with or without accompanying audio. Video technology was initia…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, and broadcasting of moving visual images. Video may also refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_(disambiguation)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — A video game, computer game, or simply game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device) t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 7: “The men bizarrely removed a manhole cover and entered the sewer system at at Hayward Street and Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg at around 1 a.m. on Friday, police said.”
CORROBORATED
Two separate web search results explicitly mention the location (Hayward Street and Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg) and the time (around 1 a.m. Friday) for the first incident.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Flatbush is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood consists of several subsections in central Brooklyn and is generally bounded by Prospect Park to the north, East F…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flatbush
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Silver Line is a bus route system in Boston and Chelsea, Massachusetts, operated by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). It is operated as part of the MBTA bus system, but brande…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_Line_(MBTA)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Washington Heights is a neighborhood in the northern part of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is named for Fort Washington, a fortification constructed at the highest natural point on Man…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Heights,_Manhattan
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
Claim 8: “A Shomrim cop car was parked over the manhole in Williamsburg Saturday.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence provides general information about Shomrim security services but does not confirm the specific detail of a car being parked over the Williamsburg manhole on Saturday.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In the short-lived television series Brooklyn South, Theodore Bikel guest-starred as Solomon Shuyler, a Shomrim volunteer and organizer. In the 2013 film Fading Gigolo, written and directed by John Tu…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shomrim_(neighborhood_watch_gr…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — “If it’s a public thing it might hurt a person who doesn’t want to arrest her husband for domestic violence.” Reached on April 19, Daskal insisted that the Shomrim’s only role was to act as the “eyes …
https://forward.com/news/339112/after-bribery-arrest-new-que…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Community Security Initiative (CSI) in New York has provided $400,000 to four civilian Jewish security services in Brooklyn, N.Y., known as Shomrim.It will be used for each outfit to purchase and …
https://www.jns.org/us-news/shomrim/23/9/18/319740/
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.