A man who was arrested after allegedly storming the “Today” show’s New York City offices on Thursday, and lunging at Craig Melvin — while shouting racial slurs — was hit with hate crime charges.
The New York Police Department confirmed to Page Six on Thursday evening that the man, identified as Andrew Truelove, was booked on hate crime menacing, hate crime burglary, hate crime criminal trespass and harassment charges after being arrested earlier in the day.
TMZ was first to report the news.
Page Six also confirmed Thursday morning that the man was able to elude security at the show’s headquarters while searching for Al Roker, 71.
After being unable to find Roker, we were told he asked Melvin, 47, where he was. He was wearing a backpack and had reached the staircase inside the studio when he encountered Melvin, but did not reach the filming studio.
Melvin called security, after which Truelove was arrested and removed from the scene.
The Post confirmed with authorities and sources that he called Melvin the N-word during the encounter, and the New York Police Department confirmed to us at the time that they had a suspect in custody.
Both Roker and Melvin went on the air following the incident, and did not discuss it during Thursday morning’s broadcast.
The New York Police Department confirmed to Page Six earlier on Thursday that someone was in custody.
“On Thursday, July 16, 2026, at approximately 0857 hours, a uniformed officer assigned to 30 Rockefeller Center was alerted to a disorderly individual inside the building,” a statement read.
“Immediately thereafter, the responding officer entered into the building and placed the individual in custody without incident. There were no injuries reported, and the investigation remains active and ongoing.”
The “Today” show addressed what they called a “security incident” in a statement to Page Six hours later.
“An individual entered an unauthorized area in a vestibule near Studio 1A,” the statement explained. “The person approached anchor Craig Melvin, who alerted security.”
The daily talk show wrote that the intruder was ultimately “taken into custody by law enforcement without further incident.”
The statement continued, “TODAY is cooperating fully with law enforcement as they investigate the matter.”
A source told Page Six that the show’s staff was already “on edge” due to the disappearance of Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy Guthrie, earlier this year.
“He could have stabbed Craig. He could have planted a bomb. It’s f–king insane,” the source told us.
On Thursday, Melvin addressed the incident with a calm social media statement.
“Hey everyone. I’ve heard from so many of you over the last few hours. I’m doing just fine,” he wrote. “Thanks for reaching out. I’m looking forward to seeing you tomorrow morning on @todayshow.”
