In an alarming and bizarre story at the mayor’s official residence on the Upper East Side, a 20-year-old man is facing charges after a break-in on New Year’s Day at Gracie Mansion. The man was caught in a bathroom near some bedrooms on the second floor, minutes after breaking in. NBC New York’s Melissa Russo reports.
A 20-year-old was arrested after breaking into Gracie Mansion, the official residence of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, and stealing a Christmas ornament in the early morning hours of New Year’s Day, authorities said.
Shortly before 4:30 a.m. Wednesday, Michael Aromando jumped a fence to the property, a stately residence inside a park on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, police said. He then made his way to the second floor, where he was spotted inside a bathroom near some bedrooms by a police officer minutes after entering the residence.
During an interview at a local police precinct, Aromando showed detectives a cellphone video he took of himself removing a Christmas ornament from a drawer in the house, according to a criminal complaint. The suspect turned over the ornament and several other items, which were not specified in the complaint.
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Aromando, who lives a few blocks from the Upper East Side residence, was arraigned in a Manhattan court on Thursday. A judge ordered him to stay away from Gracie Mansion.
A spokesperson for Adams said the mayor was not home at the time of the pre-dawn incident, as he was out marking the new year in Times Square.
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Police sources familiar with the incident said they do not consider Aromando to have been a major threat. He was charged with two counts of burglary and is due back in court Monday.
