STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A man in Midland Beach was shocked to discover that someone burned the American flag that was hanging outside his home early on Wednesday morning.
The stars and stripes were hanging on a flagpole in front of a home in the vicinity of Midland and Nugent Avenues when the vandalism occurred around 1:30 a.m. based on video footage captured by the victim’s doorbell camera.
“It’s a sad world we’re living in,” said the victim who prefers to remain anonymous due to safety concerns. “I’m just a regular old American who wanted to put an American flag in front of the house and now it’s burnt down.”
He said a lone man who was a stranger is shown on video using a lighter to torch the iconic symbol our our democracy.
“He was completely casual, didn’t look around, walked right up to the flag, lit it and kept walking,” the victim said of the man who didn’t even turn around to watch it burn.
“I’m a little on edge,” said the victim who told the Advance/SILive.com that he didn’t receive any warnings or threats before the incident and had no idea why his flag was targeted.
“That’s why I’m a little spooked out about it,” the victim said. “I don’t know what this guy is capable of, I don’t know what his motive is, I don’t know what possessed him to do that.”
The flagpole was singed and charred remnants of the flag could be seen where they fell onto and damaged the railing and porch steps.
The victim said that he called 911 to report the incident to authorities.
The FDNY did not immediately respond to a request for information.
An individual allegedly lit an American flag on fire outside a home in the vicinity of Nugent and Midland avenues on the morning of Wednesday, June 14, 2023. (Screen shots from anonymous video)
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