A climate protester was busted after he spray painted the word “USA” over a presidential insignia inside Trump Tower Wednesday afternoon, according to law enforcement sources and video from the scene.
The man, later identified by cops as Nathaniel Smith, 36, sprayed the bright green paint over the plaque inside the Midtown landmark before kneeling on the ground in front of it and closing his eyes, according to footage posted on X.
A climate protester was arrested inside Trump Tower after spray painting “USA” over a presidential insignia. Gina M Randazzo/ZUMA Press Wire / SplashNews.comMoments after a small crowd gathered — some snapping photos of the demonstrator — a security officer approached, and Smith unfurled a small banner bearing the words, “GAME OVER” with the symbol for the climate activist group Extinction Rebellion.
He was carted away by NYPD officers wearing dark-colored suits as he declared, “This is your country. This is our country. This is our planet. …You cannot ruin it without comment. They are ruining the planet for profit.”
Smith, of Crown Heights, was arrested and charged with making graffiti, possession of a graffiti instrument and criminal tampering, cops said.
He has a prior arrest for criminal trespass at Columbia University, law enforcement sources said.
While the U.S. Secret Service did not make the arrest, spokesperson James Byrne said in a statement that the federal agency “is aware of an incident involving a person spray painting graffiti inside the public lobby of Trump Tower in New York City.”
The suspect was carted away in handcuffs. Gina M Randazzo/ZUMA Press Wire / SplashNews.com“There are no disruptions to protective operations,” Byrne said. “We thank the NYPD for their immediate response and unwavering partnership.”
The brazen display comes a day after the same activist group spray-painted the Wall Street Charging Bull — before wiping away their graffiti as cops looked on.
They later sprayed graffiti on the windows of Tesla’s Meatpacking District showroom — which landed two of them in cuffs, authorities said.
It’s the latest in a spate of ecological vandalism incidents. Gina M Randazzo/ZUMA Press Wire / SplashNews.comTwo more Extinction Rebellion protesters were nabbed Tuesday evening during a demonstration outside the David H. Koch Theater in Lincoln Center — the first night of the New York City Ballet’s spring season, according to cops.
The men — one in his 30s and one in his 50s — were issued summonses and released, police said.
Video footage also shows a woman disrupting the third of four ballets set to perform that evening, “Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux.”
“It is Earth Day and we are in climate emergency!” she yelled, before being escorted out to cheers and jeers, video shows. “Our country has become a Fascist regime and we are enjoying this beauty?”
It did not appear that she was arrested.
