Read Max Azzarello Manifesto About Lighting Himself on Fire at Trump Trial

The man who set himself on fire outside former President Donald Trump's criminal trial in Manhattan wrote an online manifesto before self-immolating Friday afternoon.

Law enforcement officers told Newsweek that members of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) rushed to provide aid after someone set themselves ablaze across the street from Manhattan Criminal Court, where Trump is on trial for 34 charges of falsifying business records in attempts to conceal hush money paid to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign.

Newsweek reporter Katherine Fung, who has been reporting from inside the courtroom all week, said the man was holding a sign before torching himself, which included a link to a Substack site. A letter on the site was titled, "I have set myself on fire outside the Trump Trial."

"My name is Max Azzarello, and I am an investigative researcher who has set himself on fire outside of the Trump trial in Manhattan," the site reads.

"This extreme act of protest is to draw attention to an urgent and important discovery: We are victims of a totalitarian con, and our own government (along with many of their allies) is about to hit us with an apocalyptic fascist world coup."

Read the entire manifesto below:

The Context

Trump, who has pleaded not guilty to all 34 felony counts brought against him by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, has maintained that the case is a political stunt aimed at upsetting his reelection chances. He has also denied having an affair with Daniels.

Supporters of the former president have gathered near the courthouse since jury selection began Monday, holding signs and flags that read "Save America" and "Trump 2024." A designated protest area was set up by law enforcement at a park across the street from the trial.

Reporters who witnessed Azzarello set himself ablaze on Friday said that he did so within the designated area.

What We Know

NYPD officers confirmed Azzarello's name during a press conference shortly afterward, adding that he's from Florida and is being treated at the Cornell Burn Center on the Upper East Side. He was said to be suffering from "critical" injuries.

Azzarello claimed in his manifesto that the U.S. government is wrapped up in "Ponzi schemes" as a way to control the American people. He was also seen throwing flyers into the air moments before torching himself, which, law enforcement said, contained information about Ponzi schemes and other conspiracy theories, including one about institutions of higher education in New York City. Fung witnessed one flyer that included conspiracies about New York University.

"These claims sound like fantastical conspiracy theory, but they are not," read Azzarello's Substack post. "They are proof of conspiracy. If you investigate this mountain of research, you will prove them too. If you learn a great deal about Ponzi schemes, you will discover that our life is a lie."

The site also claims that "the Democrat vs. Republican division has been entirely manufactured ever" since former President Bill Clinton's administration, writing that when presidents "present themselves in public, they are acting as characters that are against one another, practicing kayfabe as wrestlers do."

He did not name Trump's criminal trial as a reason for his protest.

What's Next?

A full 12-person jury and six alternates have been sworn in to serve on Trump's trial, which reconvened Friday afternoon following a lunch break.

NYPD Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that there are "no public safety threats" amid Azzarello's actions.

New York City Police Chief Jeffrey Maddrey added during the department's press briefing that police will reassess its security protocols, adding, "going to look at everything and with the magnitude of what's going on around here, we'll reassess our security with our federal partners."

Update 4/19/24, 3:30 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information and background.