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Al Roker is standing by Today colleague Craig Melvin after he was confronted by an intruder at the NBC morning show's New York City studio on Thursday, July 16.
The weather anchor took to Instagram the day after Melvin was approached by a man who had allegedly slipped past studio security to yell racial slurs at the TV personality while also asking for Roker.
Sharing a collection of photos of himself with Melvin, Roker began, "A really heartfelt thank you to all who reached out over the last 24 hours to check in on my brother, @craigmelvinnbc."
"We are both okay," he continued. "It’s moments like these that serve to pull us together. You all, like Craig, said ‘You come after one of us, you come after all of us.’ We’ll talk about it this morning on @todayshow.”
Melvin also addressed the incident on Instagram on Thursday, thanking people for reaching out to check on him and assuring that he was "doing just fine."
On the Friday, July 17, episode of Today, Melvin spoke at greater length about what had happened, sharing, "You may have heard that unfortunately, an intruder made his way into an unauthorized area here at Studio 1A. Thankfully, he was apprehended quickly; he was placed under arrest. We are cooperating fully with NYPD as they investigate the matter, and we are just very happy that everyone is safe."
NBC News also released a statement about the "security incident" that had occurred on Thursday morning, saying that "an individual entered an unauthorized area in a vestibule near Studio 1A," and that "the person approached anchor Craig Melvin, who alerted security."
"The individual was detained and taken into custody by law enforcement without further incident. There was no altercation, and no one was injured," the statement continued. "TODAY is cooperating fully with law enforcement as they investigate the matter. NBC and TODAY take the safety and security of our employees, talent, staff and guests extremely seriously. We are reviewing the incident and our security protocols and remain committed to providing a safe and secure environment for everyone who works at and visits our studios."
The alleged intruder has since been taken into custody by the NYPD and identified as Andrew Truelove, 41. Truelove is facing charges of hate crime-burglary, hate crime-menacing, hate crime-criminal trespass, and harassment.
