Man, 37, is arrested after walking into New York’s St Patrick’s Cathedral with gas cans and lighter fluid while people were inside, just three days after the Notre Dame fire
- Marc Lamparello, 37, entered the church with two 2-gallon gas cans, police say
- He was reportedly stopped by security outside the church in Manhattan
- The man, who is known to police, is understood to have been taken into custody
- He is said to have given ‘inconsistent and evasive’ answers when questioned
- The suspect is said to have told cops he was cutting through the cathedral to get to his minivan which had run out of gas
- A large police presence remains outside the church, which was open at the time
- The incident comes just days after the Notre Dame Cathedral fire in Paris
- Police confirmed they had increased security at St Patrick’s in recent days
A New Jersey man was caught walking into New York’s famed St Patrick’s Cathedral with two gas cans, two bottles of lighter fluid and two extended lighters Wednesday evening, police have said.
The 37-year-old man, named as Marc Lamparello, is said to have entered the Manhattan church with the two gallon cans of gasoline before being apprehended by security at around 8pm, The New York Post reports.
Police say it is too early to say whether the incident was terror related but it comes three days after the Notre Dame Cathedral fire in Paris.
NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism John Miller confirmed they had increased security at the site in recent days. He called Lamperallo’s actions ‘very suspicious’.
At a press conference Wednesday evening he said: ‘It’s hard to say what his intentions were, but I think the totality of circumstances of an individual walking into an iconic location like St. Patrick’s Cathedral carrying over four gallons of gasoline, two bottles of lighter fluid and lighters is something that we would have great concern over.’
Police tweeted Wednesday evening: ‘We are investigating an incident at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Expect a heavy police presence. Update to follow.’
They later added: ‘Around 7:55pm, a man walked into St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan with gas cans and lighter fluid, and was subsequently apprehended by @NYPDCT without incident.
‘We thank our partners for their help, and remember – if you see something, say something.’
The archdiocese said the man was stopped as entered the landmark cathedral and there was no fire. ‘Nothing happened inside the cathedral’, they said.
Police say the 37-year-old man entered the Manhattan church with the two 2 gallon cans of gasoline, two bottles of lighter fluid and two extended lighters
Pictures posted online show a large police presence outside the church, which was open at the time of the incident
St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which was built in 1878, has installed a sprinkler-like system during recent renovations and its wooden roof is coated with fire retardant
The man, who is known to police, is understood to have been taken into custody after being apprehended by security at the cathedral. NBC reports he is ’emotionally disturbed’.
After spilling some of the gasoline he is said to have left the church but was quickly found by nearby counter-terrorism police after church staff alerted them to the incident.
The suspect is said to have told cops he was cutting through the cathedral to get to his minivan which had run out of gas, giving them ‘inconsistent and evasive’ answers when questioned.
Miller said: ‘His basic story was that he was cutting through the cathedral to get to Madison Avenue, that his car had run out of gas. We took a look at the vehicle. It was not out of gas.’
The suspect is said to have told cops he was cutting through the cathedral to get to his minivan, pictured right, which had run out of gas
Police say it is too early to say whether the incident was terror related but it comes three days after the Notre Dame Cathedral fire in Paris
NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism John Miller confirmed they had increased security at the site in recent days
Pictures showed a large police presence outside the church, which was open at the time of the incident.
Miller added: ‘There was some very good work done here, obviously by the St. Patrick’s Cathedral security officer who encountered this man immediately inside as well as the two police officers who tracked him down.’
St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which was built in 1878, has installed a sprinkler-like system during recent renovations and its wooden roof is coated with fire retardant.
A devastating blaze struck the 850-year-old Notre Dame Cathedral on Monday destroying the roof and spire.