Max Azzarello, 37, dead after lighting himself on fire in designated protest area outside of Donald Trump’s trial
THE man who lit himself ablaze on Friday afternoon outside the Lower Manhattan courtroom where Donald Trump’s trial is being held has reportedly died.
Max Azzarello, of St. Augustine, Florida, remained on fire for about three minutes while first responders attempted to get to him in the designated protest area.
Azzarello was rushed off into an ambulance and was reportedly in critical condition at Weill Cornell Medicine – Burn Center.
Officials said he was unlikely to survive his injuries. The New York Times reported his death early on Saturday morning.
Azzarello was outside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse when he spread pamphlets advertising conspiracy theories around the park at about 1:35pm on Friday.
He then covered himself in a flammable liquid and lit himself ablaze.
Some of the documents he left strewn about the park also had a link to a Substack that started, “I have set myself on fire outside the Trump Trial.”
Onlookers scrambled to escape the intensity of the heat radiating from the flames.
But because the area was cordoned off, first responders struggled to access Azzarello.
Eventually, dozens of police officers arrived to extinguish the flames.
Six first responders suffered minor injuries in the chaos, the FDNY said.
Azzarello, who shared a manifesto online before committing his final act, was spotted with signs in different parts of New York City on Wednesday and Thursday.
He was seen in Washington Square Park wielding a sign singling out New York University on Wednesday.
On Thursday, he was in Collect Pond Park displaying a sign with the message: “Trump is with Biden and they’re about to Fascist coup us.”
SAD HISTORY
Azzarello’s family said he left Florida and arrived in New York after April 13, according to The New York Times.
He documented his trip to the Big Apple on his social media profiles.
One particular post revealed a suitcase packed with the previously mentioned pamphlets and the caption, “This should be a fun trip.”
A native of Sea Cliff, New York, Azzarello worked for Representative Tom Suozzi in 2013, the outlet reported.
He held several jobs in recent years and was most recently listed as being a self-employed Research Investigator.
But Azzarello had reportedly struggled in the years leading up to the April 19 self-immolation.
Azzarello suffered the loss of his mother in April 2022 to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Friends of Azzarello’s from his time at Rutgers University said the loss was a catalyst for his erratic behavior, The New York Times reported.
Last summer, Azzarello was arrested in Florida on August 21 for disturbing the police and was released the next day.
However, he was arrested days later on August 24 for damaging property and criminal mischief, reported The New York Post.
In the bizarre mugshot, Azzarello sticks his tongue out and has one eye closed.
In both of these arrests, Azzarello was listed as being unemployed.
He remained at the St. Johns County Jail until October 3 and was released after being sentenced to 180 days of probation.
Shortly before those arrests, he wrote in a Facebook post about spending time in a psych ward.
“Three days in the psych ward, and all I got were my new favorite socks,” the post read.
However, there is no way to verify the claim at this time.
Everything we know about the man who set himself on fire outside Trump's trial
On Friday, a man set himself on fire across the street from the downtown Manhattan courtroom where jury selection in former President Donald Trump’s criminal trial concluded.
- The horrific scene unfolded at 1:30 pm.
- The man, identified as Max Azzarello, was standing in a designated protest area outside the Manhattan courthouse.
- Azzarello pulled out what police described as an alcohol-based cleaning substance from his backpack and doused himself with it.
- He proceeded to light himself on fire.
- Azzarello burned for approximately 3 minutes before he was extinguished and rushed away.
- The man tossed a conspiracy-laden manifesto in the air before the self-immolation act.
- Azzarello is in a nearby burn unit in critical condition.
- NYPD officials said Azzarello is from St. Augustine, Florida, and his family was unaware he was in New York.
