Self-Immolator Max Azzarello Dies After Igniting Himself Outside of New York Trump Trial
Spencer Platt/Getty
The disturbed protester who lit himself on fire outside of former President Donald Trump's trial in Manhattan yesterday has died after spending hours in the hospital in critical condition.
Max Azzarello of St. Augustine, Florida, died of his injuries on Friday night after participating in what he referred to as an “extreme act of protest… to draw attention to an urgent and important discovery: We are victims of a totalitarian con, and our own government.”
On his Substack blog, the 37-year-old ranted about a so-called “Ponzi scheme” involving bank failures and cryptocurrency and claimed that “both parties are run by financial criminals whose only goals are to divide, deceive, and bleed us dry.”
“They divide the public against itself and blame the other party while everything gets worse and more expensive and handful of people take all the money,” Azzarello wrote. “Since it is fully parasitic, a secret kleptocracy is an incredibly unstable form of government – left to its own devices, it can only lead to fascism or failed state.”
After setting himself ablaze, Azzarello was rushed to the hospital, where he died just before 11:00 p.m., the Daily Mail reported.
Highly disturbing video captured from the incident shows the moment chaos erupted at around 1:37 p.m., with New York Police Department (NYPD) officers extinguishing the fire and paramedics rushing to put the man in an ambulance.
GRAPHIC CONTENT WARNING — WATCH: Man Sets Self on Fire In Front of Trump Courthouse Live on CNN
Just days before his self-immolation, Azzarello posted an Instagram highlight saying he would be “spending the week at Washington Square Park airing out all of NYU's dirty laundry.”
His final post was an Instagram story just minutes before the blaze saying, “I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you.”
Azzarello praised Aaron Bushnell, the active-duty U.S. Air Force member who set himself on fire in front of the Israeli Embassy in Washington, DC, in February.
“Heroes and martyrs, folks,” Azzarello posted to Instagram at the time. “God f****** bless you, Aaron Bushnell.”
— Peachy Keenan (@KeenanPeachy) April 19, 2024
Bushnell, who also died of his injuries, was publicly mourned by his commander following his suicide.
Airman Aaron Bushnell's unit put out a statement mourning his death by self-immolation, calling it a "tragedy."
Commander Col. Celina Noyes: “When a tragedy like this occurs, every member of the Air Force feels it."
"We extend our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of… pic.twitter.com/WErYAWtDG4
— Kristina Wong 🇺🇸 (@kristina_wong) February 27, 2024
The NYPD said they have an open investigation into Azzarello's extreme protest outside of Trump's hush-money trial, according to the Daily Mail.
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