The 63-year-old Brooklynite John Butch, who allegedly set himself on fire in the lobby of the building at 315 Hudson, where Google is the largest tenant in Lower Manhattan, was arrested on Friday. According to NYPD, Butch used a lighter and a flammable substance at around 15.00. Butch, who was taken to Weill Cornell Medical Center following reports, was reported to be in stable condition despite his burns.
Butch faces charges of arson, criminal mischief and endangering the welfare of others. Police said that although NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau is located in the building, Butch is not an employee of the department. In the 10-story building, which covers approximately 46 thousand 450 square meters, Google uses more than 38 thousand square meters of space. Google said Butch appeared to be trying to reach another tenant’s section. Police said they had not disclosed the motive for the incident or the connection to the targeted tenant, and that the investigation was ongoing.
Why it matters
It is not yet known whether the incident was directly connected to Google; although the company is the building’s largest user, it says the suspect appeared to be trying to reach another tenant’s section. The presence of NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau in the building is also not enough on its own to establish a connection to the department, because police said Butch is not an employee of the agency. The central unanswered question in the case is therefore which tenant the act was directed at and what connection existed between Butch and that tenant; police have not disclosed either point. The charges of arson, criminal mischief and endangering the welfare of others show that the incident is not being assessed solely in terms of Butch’s injuries, but is also subject to a criminal investigation concerning property and other people in the building.