NEW YORK - A man has died after setting himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
The man burned for several minutes in full view of television cameras that were set up outside the courthouse, where the first-ever criminal trial of a former US president is being held.
An NYPD spokesperson said the man was declared dead overnight at a hospital. Officials had previously said he was in critical condition.
Witnesses said the man, who was in his 30s, pulled pamphlets from a backpack and threw them in the air before he doused himself with a liquid and set himself on fire.
One of those pamphlets included references to "evil billionaires" but portions that were visible to a Reuters witness did not mention Trump.
The NYPD said the man, who they identified as Max Azzarello of St. Augustine, Florida, did not appear to be targeting Trump or others involved in the trial.
"Right now we are labeling him as sort of a conspiracy theorist, and we are going from there," Tarik Sheppard, a deputy police commissioner, said at a news conference.
In an online manifesto, a man using that name said he set himself on fire and apologized to friends, witnesses and first responders.
The post warns of "an apocalyptic fascist coup" and criticizes cryptocurrency and US politicians, but does not single out Trump in particular.
A smell of smoke lingered in the plaza after the incident, according to a Reuters witness, and a police officer sprayed a fire extinguisher on the ground.
A smoldering backpack and a gas can were visible.
The downtown Manhattan courthouse, heavily guarded by police, drew a throng of protesters and onlookers on Monday, the trial's first day, though crowds have since dwindled.
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