The 50-foot tree on Sixth Avenue went up in flames just before 12:15 a.m., and heavy flames then spread to smaller decorated trees in the display.
Police say the 49-year-old suspect climbed up "the metal superstructure" -- the tree is an artificial sculpture that is shaped to look like a tree -- lit papers he brought with him on fire, and shoved the papers into the tree structure.
He then climbed down and watched from the street level as it burned, and he was spotted by building security who pointed the man out to police officers posted in nearby Rockefeller Center.
WATCH raw video: Fox News Christmas tree goes up in flames
The suspect is identified as 49-year-old Craig Tamanaha, who is homeless, with a last known address in Brooklyn.
A lighter was found in his possession.
Tamanaha is charged with criminal mischief, reckless endangerment, arson, criminal nuisance, endangering others, criminal trespass, criminal tampering and disorderly conduct.
He has three prior arrests, two for drug possession and one for public intoxication.
The motive for the arson was unclear, but police say Tamanaha appears to have acted alone.
Police Commissioner Dermot Shea said detectives are looking into whether mental illness was a factor.
"The motive I don't think is clear at this point," he said. "It's an individual that is known to us. He has a series of low level arrests and drug arrest. He was issued earlier this year some appearance tickets and didn't come back to court, which unfortunately is something we see all too often. Also has some low level arrests out of state."
ALSO READ | Exclusive: Sade goes one-on-one with Dr. Jill Biden during first holiday season as First Lady
The holiday display is set up in what News Corporation calls Fox Square outside its headquarters, which houses Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post.
The tree is prominently featured on Fox News Channel, which hosted a tree lighting ceremony Sunday night.
The company says the 50-foot high tree has 10,000 glass ornaments and 100,000 lights. It takes more than 21 hours to assemble.
Fox is vowing to rebuild the tree.
----------
* Get Eyewitness News Delivered
* More Manhattan news
* Send us a news tip
* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts
* Follow us on YouTube
Submit a News Tip
Copyright © 2021 WABC-TV. All Rights Reserved.
U.S. - Latest - Google News
December 08, 2021 at 07:00PM
https://ift.tt/3DBsYNi
Fox News Christmas tree set on fire in Midtown Manhattan; suspect identified - WABC-TV
U.S. - Latest - Google News
https://ift.tt/2ShjtvN
https://ift.tt/35zY20J
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Fox News Christmas tree set on fire in Midtown Manhattan; suspect identified - WABC-TV"
Post a Comment