The man accused of a hate crime at NBC's Manhattan studio has a long history of criminal behavior, with charges spanning over two decades.
Court records reveal that Andrew Truelove, 41, has been arrested multiple times, including for attempted kidnapping and trespassing.
A review of footage from the show "Today" reveals a man resembling Truelove was seen in the background as early as 8:03 a.m. the day of the incident, and was later seen approaching "Today" co-host Craig Melvin with a racial slur.
According to the NYPD, Truelove was arrested at 8:57 a.m. after he allegedly confronted Melvin in a private area of the building not open to the public.
Truelove's extensive rap sheet includes multiple charges in the state of Virginia, including trespassing, destruction of property, making bomb threats, and multiple probation violations.
In 2007, Truelove was convicted of attempting to abduct an 8-year-old from a school in Norfolk, Virginia, and was sentenced to 10 years in prison, with six suspended and 10 years on probation.
Truelove faces hate crime charges of burglary, a felony, and menacing, a misdemeanor, in connection with the Melvin incident.
He is being held on $10,000 bail in a New York City jail and is due back in court on Wednesday.
Truelove has also been linked to multiple pending cases in New York, including an alleged assault, trespassing, and reckless endangerment charges on the city's transit system.
The incident has raised concerns about security protocols at NBC's studios, and the network has stated that it is reviewing the incident and its security procedures.
Truelove's past behavior has also sparked speculation about a potential connection to another unsolved case, the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, whose daughter is a colleague of Melvin's.
However, Truelove has not been linked to the disappearance by any law enforcement agency, and he does not match the physical description of a masked man seen on Guthrie's front porch around the time she was taken.
Truelove has reportedly traveled through the Sonoran Desert region, and it is not clear when he arrived in New York City.
