Entertainment
Man sets himself on fire outside courthouse where Donald Trump is on trial
A man set himself on fire this week outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump is on trial.
April 19, 2024, published at 2:38 PM ET
A man set himself on fire outside the New York courthouse Donald Trump is on trial for alleged falsification of company documents, RadarOnline.com can report.
The shocking incident happened Friday afternoon as former President Trump appeared in court for the fourth day of his criminal hush-money trial.
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CNNs Laura Coates was halfway through the broadcast when the unknown man set himself on fire. She quickly turned her attention to the shocking development and confirmed that a man had set himself on fire.
‘There’s a man rushing to help. Coats are coming off, they’re trying to put out the fire, we have members of the security force, the NYPD rushing to the scene,” Coates reported in a panic.
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According to CNNthe man walked “into the park across the street from the courthouse” and began “throwing flyers in the air” shortly before dousing himself and setting himself on fire.
“The man walked into the park across the street from the courthouse and threw flyers in the air,” a senior law enforcement official reportedly told the newspaper. “He then took something out of a backpack – it wasn’t exactly what it was – and set himself on fire.”
It is currently unclear why the man set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former President Trump is on trial.
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The shocking incident happened Friday afternoon as former President Trump appeared in court for the fourth day of his criminal hush-money trial.
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Another senior law enforcement official reportedly told the newspaper that “investigators spread out to collect the flyers that the unknown man threw in the air.”
One of the flyers reportedly stated that “NYU is a gang front” and included “several allegations of wrongdoing” against the university.
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At least one person reportedly used a fire extinguisher to put out the fire, while a nearby EMT rushed up and attempted to help the man who was on fire.
Meanwhile, several viewers rushed to social media after the shocking incident occurred outside the Manhattan courthouse on Friday afternoon.
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At least one person reportedly used a fire extinguisher to put out the fire, while a nearby EMT rushed up and attempted to help the man who was on fire.
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“Did anyone else just hear about the man who set himself on fire outside the courtroom in New York?!” one person tweeted shortly after the fire was brought under control. “Holy smoke!”
“I was watching the news and then it felt like a movie… unreal,” the user added. “Be safe out there!”
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“I saw it live on CNN,” wrote another distraught viewer. “I’m still shaking!”
The victim has since been identified as a man named Max Azzerelloaccording to Newsweek.
Azzerello reportedly held up a sign with a link to a website shortly before the incident manifesto captioned: “I set myself on fire outside the Trump trial.”
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The victim was reportedly identified as a man named Max Azzerello.
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“My name is Max Azzarello and I am an investigative investigator who set himself on fire outside the Trump trial in Manhattan,” the manifesto said.
“This extreme act of protest should draw attention to an urgent and important discovery: we are victims of a totalitarian scam, and our own government (along with many of their allies) is about to strike us with an apocalyptic fascist world coup.”
