Brooklyn Man Sets Himself Ablaze in Google's Manhattan Building
A 63-year-old Brooklyn man set himself on fire in the lobby of a Manhattan office building that houses Google offices, leaving him severely burned and alone in his injuries.
According to investigators, John Butch ignited himself using a 'lighter accelerant' at approximately 3 p.m. Friday (Aug. 28) in the lobby of 315 Hudson Street near Vandam Street in Hudson Square.
No one else at the scene was hurt, but surveillance footage captured Butch first entering the lobby around 2 p.m., leaving, then returning roughly an hour later before the fire broke out.
Security guards rushed to extinguish the flames using fire extinguishers before FDNY and NYPD units arrived. Butch was transported to Weill Cornell Medical Center and was listed in stable condition as of Saturday.
He was charged Saturday with arson, criminal mischief, and reckless endangerment. Investigators found no note or political leaflets on Butch, but they did recover a collapsible baton inside his bag.