Exclusive | Today Show hate-crime suspect who allegedly targeted Craig Melvin was homeless ex-con with long criminal history

The man accused of storming NBC’s “Today” show studios and hurling a racist slur at co-anchor Craig Melvin Thursday is a career offender who has spent years bouncing between prison, homelessness in California and repeated run-ins with the law in New York.Andrew Truelove, 41, allegedly slipped into a restricted vestibule near Studio 1A at 30 Rockefeller Plaza around 9 a.m.and demanded to see longtime weatherman Al Roker, law enforcement sources said.Instead, he came face-to-face with Melvin — and allegedly unleashed the N-word at the stunned anchor, authorities said.Melvin alerted security, and an NYPD officer working a paid detail inside the building detained Truelove, according to police.He was taken to the Midtown North Precinct, where police slapped him with hate crime charges including burglary, menacing and criminal trespass, along with a harassment charge, authorities said.Law enforcement sources said Truelove has been arrested several times in New York City within the past year and has a criminal history that stretches years and thousands of miles.

In 2023, Truelove was homeless in California after arriving from his native Virginia just two days after completing supervised probation, according to the Los Angeles Times.Before that, he had served prison time following what was described as a string of felony offenses.After landing at LAX, Truelove drifted across California before exhausting most of his money and ended up living on the streets of Southern California.At the time, he said he suffered from PTSD and a related mood disorder and had no friends or family in the state.He spent much of his time sleeping outdoors and lingering outside a 7-Eleven after his plans to launch a social media platform fell apart....