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By Tom Winter, Jonathan Dienst and Phil Helsel
A man carrying two cans of gasoline, lighters and lighters attempted to enter New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral on Wednesday, but was arrested by a security guard and placed in police custody, a senior official said. the NYPD.
"Nothing has happened inside the cathedral," said the New York Archdiocese in a statement.
There was no fire, but there were people inside and the building was open at the time of the incident. Three senior law enforcement officials said that the man could be emotionally disturbed.
The archdiocese said that "the individual was arrested while he was trying to enter the cathedral" and was handed over to the police.
The incident occurred a few days after the fire of the Notre-Dame Cathedral, according to what the French authorities think could be an accident, and renovations were underway at the time of its burst. Police said the NYPD maintained a robust security presence in the cathedral at all times, but the department had added to that in recent days.
Law enforcement officials told NBC News that the man arrested is Marc Lamparello, 37, from New Jersey. Lamparello is enrolled as a PhD and Lecturer in the Department of Philosophy at the City University of New York.
NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism, John Miller, said at a press conference Wednesday night that the man had been arrested shortly before 8 pm. by a security guard at the cathedral.
The man parked in a van on Fifth Avenue and left the car. At about 7:55 pm, he returned to the van and took out two two-gallon gasoline cans, a plastic bag with two bottles of lighter fluid and two lighters, and tried to enter the cathedral, said Miller.
"When he enters the cathedral, he is confronted by a security guard who asked him where he was going, informing him that he could not get to the cathedral with these objects" Miller said. "At that time, gasoline had apparently sunk to the ground."
Two anti-terrorist police officers who were outside were notified and caught up with the man on 50th Street, Miller said. "His answers were inconsistent and evasive," he said.
"His basic story was that he was crossing the cathedral to get to Madison Avenue, as his car was running out of gas," Miller said. "We examined the vehicle. This was not out of gas.
He was later detained, said Miller. He made no statement about Our Lady in his initial statements, said Miller.
"It's hard to say exactly what his intentions were," said Miller, pointing out that the person in custody was known to the police.
"We are looking at their past, of course, and talking to two or three agencies," said Miller. The FBI joint working group on terrorism is participating "with great caution," he said, "because we do not know exactly what his state of mind was, what his motive was."
"But we know that carrying two cans of gasoline and equipment to illuminate this, in a public place and place like St. Patrick's Cathedral is a danger to the public, and it's a good thing. that's why he's in custody, "said Miller.
New York City Councilor Justin Brannan tweeted this police would increase its presence around churches and religious institutions on Thursday as a precautionary measure.
The cornerstone of the iconic Midtown Church was laid in 1858 and officially opened on May 25, 1879, according to the cathedral's website. Pope Benedict XVI became the first pope to celebrate Mass in 2008.
The cathedral and has undergone renovations since, including a nearly $ 200 million restoration announced in 2015 and completed a year later, reported NBC New York.
"It's a very good job that was done here, obviously by the security officer of St. Patrick's Cathedral who met this man immediately inside", as well as by the two police officers who have found, said Miller.
Doha Madani and David Paredes contributed.
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