Is nothing sacred? NYC homeless man, 49, is arrested for torching News Corp's giant 50ft Xmas tree outside its Manhattan HQ
A 49-year-old homeless man has been arrested for setting fire to the iconic 50ft Christmas Tree outside the News Corp HQ in Times Square shortly after midnight last night.
Fox News employees called police after watching Craig Tamanaha, 49, climb the tree at 12.14am and set it on fire. He tried to scramble away, but was taken into custody.
NYPD detectives tell DailyMail.com that it was a completely random act and not politically motivated against News Corp, which owns The New York Post and The Wall Street Journal.
It's unclear how long Tamanaha had been living in the city; he has two prior arrests with the NYPD - one in February and one in March and both were for drugs possession.
He had a lighter in his possession when he was arrested but the FDNY has not been able to confirm yet if that's what he used to set fire to the tree.
Tamanaha is now in police custody, awaiting transfer and is due to appear later in court on Wednesday on six charges including arson, criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct.
The incident is another sad example of the senseless and random crime that is ravaging the city and is likely to deter tourists this Christmas, the first holiday season that New York has been able to welcome international visitors since 2019.
Craig Tamanaha, 49, is taken into custody outside the News Corp building on Tuesday night. Fox News employees watched as he climbed the tree and then as he tried to run away. It remains unclear exactly what he used to set it on fire
A 50ft tall Christmas tree outside the News Corporation building in New York has been set on fire as police arrested a man for arson
Plumes of black smoke billowed from the festive display after it was set ablaze shortly after midnight in Fox Square, by the building which houses Fox News
Violent crimes across NYC are soaring thanks to a wave of bail reforms and decisions by soft-on-crime Mayor Bill de Blasio
The red, white and blue decorations (shown, left, before the tree was set on fire) and (right) after the assault on Tuesday night
Crime is soaring all over the city with violent attacks on subways and random assaults in the street happening far more frequently than in the past two years.
Outgoing Mayor Bill de Blasio has been largely blamed for the surge in violence, after softening bail reform to let criminals out of jail early then moving homeless people out of shelters and onto the streets or into hotels during the height of the pandemic.
Fox staff received this internal memo on Wednesday morning after the tree incident
His term ends on December 31. Mayor-elect Eric Adams, a former NYPD cop, has promised a crackdown on crime.
Three nearby Christmas trees which were also decorated with lights were damaged by the blaze.
Police cordoned off the square as FDNY firefighters extinguished the fire.
'Units responded to 1211 Ave of the Americas at 00:14 hours for a report of a rubbish fire. FDNY members extinguished a tree on fire in front of location.
'No injuries, fire marshals to investigate,' the FDNY said on Wednesday morning.
It remains unclear if Tamanaha has other criminal records in different states, or where he is from.
He has now been charged with criminal mischief, reckless endangerment, arson, criminal nuisance, endangering others, criminal trespass, criminal tampering, disorderly conduct.
'On Wednesday, December 8, 2021, at approximately 0014 hours, a 49-year-old male was observed by Fox News Channel security climbing the Christmas tree decorated outside their office building near the corner of West 48 Street and Sixth Avenue, within the confines of the Midtown North Precinct.
'Upon arrival, officers observed the male running from the location and he was taken into custody without further incident. The fire within the tree was extinguished without further injury or incident by responding FDNY personnel.
A worker disassembles a Christmas tree outside Fox News headquarters, in New York, Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2021. Police say a man is facing charges including arson for setting fire to a 50-foot Christmas tree in front of Fox News headquarters in midtown Manhattan
The shell of the tree outside the News Corp HQ in Times Square on Wednesday morning
Workers removed charred branches and lights from the tree's metal structure on Wednesday morning. A new one will go up this week
Cops remained at the roped off scene this morning as the homeless arsonist was awaiting his first court appearance
'The male suspect was removed to the MTN Precinct where he will be processed; there was a lighter removed from his person, but it’s unclear if there were any accelerant used.
'The cause of the fire is to be determined by NYC Fire Marshall, there are no injuries reported and the investigation is ongoing,' an NYPD spokesman said.
The tree had been lit Sunday during an 'all-American Christmas tree lighting' ceremony.
It had been decorated with 10,000 glass ornaments, 100,000 lights and it had taken staff 21 hours to assemble.
It is not yet known if the tree will be replaced.
Fox & Friends host Steve Doocy said at its unveiling: 'When we walk in at three and four o’clock in the morning on weekdays to go to work, the music is so orchestral, so dramatic, and so big, it just puts you in the Christmas spirit as you walk through the crossroads of the world.
'Rockefeller Center is famous for having a Christmas tree. Now we have two of the biggest Christmas trees in Rockefeller Center.'
In an internal memo, Fox News Media CEO Suzanne Scott told staff: 'This has become a wonderful new tradition on FOX Square over the last three years.
'We will not let this deliberate and brazen act of cowardice deter us.'
The company will rebuild and install a new tree this week.
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