NYPD charges man who burst into flames at Google office building in lower Manhattan

Police have arrested the man who burst into flames inside a lower Manhattan building where Google has an office, officials said Saturday.

John Butch, 65, was charged with criminal mischief, arson and reckless endangerment while hospitalized, recuperating from severe burns he suffered when his backpack burst into flames inside the Hudson Square building around Friday.

Butch had just entered the Hudson St. building at about 3 p.m. when something in his backpack ignited, and his body became engulfed in flames. Investigators suspect lighter fluid in his backpack fueled the flames, cops said.

Butch lives in Midwood, Brooklyn, some eight miles from where the fire erupted. Police said this was his first arrest in New York City.

Office staff immediately used fire extinguishers to put out the flames.

Butch suffered severe burns on his head, upper body and arms, officials said. Medics rushed him to New York Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Medical Center in stable condition.

No other injuries were reported.

Police said there is no immediate indication the bizarre incident was connected to Google.

It also was not immediately clear if Butch had meant to set himself on fire or was planning to set a fire with the materials he had in his backpack.

Police found a collapsible baton inside the bag, but have not recovered any political leaflets that would suggest an act of protest. He didn’t make any statements before going up in flames, cops said.

Surveillance video recovered by police shows him walking into the building’s lobby wearing the bookbag, a tan sweater, gray pants and sneakers and suddenly bursting into flames, officials said.

“At first I thought they were shooting a film or something,” said a building worker who witnessed the incident from across the street. “I saw the flames in the lobby. Then the flames were running around the lobby, and security was trying to put him out.”

“One of the security guards came out of the building with the burning backpack and threw it into the street,” the building worker recalled. “The others inside put him out with fire extinguishers. When they brought him out, he was terribly burned, all wrapped in bandages. I don’t know if you want to live that way. It was terrible.”

The NYPD set up a crime scene that extended outside the building’s front door, where a singed backpack was spotted lying just off the curb.

A building worker, who asked to remain anonymous, said he reviewed surveillance footage that shows the man entering the building around 2 p.m., leaving, and then returning to the lobby about an hour later, when the fire erupted.

In June, Google renewed its lease in the Hudson Square building, where the tech giant occupies more than 400,000 square feet of office space. The NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau also has offices inside the Hudson St. building.

Butch remained hospitalized Saturday. His arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court was pending.