Christmas Tree Arsonist Breaks Free And Is On The Loose

The man accused of torching a Christmas tree outside the New York City headquarters of Fox News was let go last week without bail shortly after prosecutors reduced the number of charges against him from seven to three.

“I have been thinking about lighting the tree on fire all day long,” Craig Tamanaha told Detective Matthew Demaio after he torched the artificial tree which had been decorated in red, white, and blue, according to court papers.

Tamanaha, 49, was arraigned on one count each of felony second-degree criminal mischief, misdemeanor second-degree reckless endangerment, and misdemeanor fifth-degree arson.

New York criminal justice reforms enacted in January 2020 bar judges from setting bail on these charges. Criminal defense lawyer Mark Bederow said that Tamanaha would have had to be charged with third-degree arson as a hate crime for the case to require bail.

“I didn’t do it,” the defendant told reporters as he left the courtroom then started screaming obscenities at them.

“The moms that want to rape their f—-king daughter’s — they set it on fire,” Tamanaha shouted before asking reporters for a cigarette.

Tamanaha apparently sneaked into the enclosure that surrounded the 50-foot tree outside Fox News headquarters in Midtown Manhattan at about 12:10 a.m. and lit the tree on fire, causing $500,000 in damage, according to the complaint.

Police charged Tamanaha with seven counts — including criminal nuisance, criminal trespass, criminal tampering, and disorderly conduct, which do not require bail either.

Freelance photographer Jeenah Moon said that Tamanaha had exposed himself on Nov. 29 outside the Ghislaine Maxwell trial. “He was acting weird and pulled down his pants,” she said. He was not arrested for the alleged indecent exposure.

In the meantime, Fox News plans to unveil a new All-American Christmas tree in Fox Square at 48th Street and 6th Avenue during “The Five.”

“We have planned for a new tree to be rebuilt and installed by Thursday afternoon as a sign of resilience and hope in the face of a horrible act,” Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott said.

Cardinal Dolan, Reverend Jacques DeGraff, Rabbi Joseph Ptasnik, and members of the FDNY and NYPD will be on hand for the tree lighting, Scott said.

Tamanaha, who is homeless, faces a maximum of two to seven years in prison if convicted, he is due back in court in early January.