A 62-year-old man was arrested by the New York Police for lighting an American flag near President Biden's motorcade, Breaking 4 News reported. Biden's visit to the NYPD headquarters following the death of two officers, Jason Rivera and Wilbert Mora met with a lot of protests on Thursday.
Protestors swarmed behind a police barricade on Pearl Street and chanted anti-Biden slogans. "Let's go, Brandon," one protestor shouted. "You are not my president, Joe Biden," another screamed. Slogans like 'We will not comply' and 'No vaccine mandate' were also heard. Biden visited the NYPD headquarters to talk about crime and gun violence.
Amidst the protests, an unnamed 62-year-old man set the flag of the United States on fire near the NYPD headquarters as President Biden's entourage went past him.
Burned flag
Breaking 4 News tweeted an image of the man dressed in a bright neon jacket and surrounded by NYPD uniformed officers. The flag that he attempted to burn had a hole and a torch mark as shown in the image. The man was later taken to the 7th precinct where he was given a criminal summons and released.
Quoting the NYPD, Newsweek reported that the man in question 'was standing on a 'boulder being used as a barrier at the location.' He was asked to step down by officers for 'security and safety reasons, who then proceeded to enter a private fenced-in area, held an American flag upside down and successfully lit it on fire.'
Crime and gun violence
President Biden, US Attorney General Merrick Garland, and members of Congress met with NYC Mayor Eric Adams, Governor Kathy Hochul, and NYPD Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell at One Police Plaza to discuss illegal guns and violence in the city. The meeting comes days after two NYPD cops, Jason Rivera, 22, and Wilbert Mora, 27, were killed on duty during a domestic violence call at an apartment in Harlem.
