Author charged after buzzing U.N. building

Press, 11 October 1979, Page 9

Author charged after buzzing U.N. building

?fZPA«Reiiter

New York

A publicity-hungry author was in jail yesterday after buzzing tie L nited Nations headquarters in Nev York in a small plane, causing he evacuation of thousands of United Nations workers.

the pilot, Robert Baudin. apd 61. was arrested after r.' spent nearly three hours fling around the skyscraper Hildings of the United Ifetions and his publisher Karby. Baudin told reporters he fas unhappy with the Har»urt. Brace, Jovanocvich lubiishing company for the xay it had handled his autobiographical book, “Confession of a Promiscuc ■ Counterfeiter.” He was arrested after landing the plane. and charged with aggravated assault by the focal authorities. The Federal Bureau of Investigation said Baudin would be charged with extortion. Asked whether he had threatened to crash his plane into the United Nations building as the police earlier reported, he replied: “No way. I have been flying for 30 years and was in full control of the plane ... I

was not going to crash into any building.” It was the first time in the 34-year history of the United Nations that an evacuation order had been is id at its headquarters. It also raised questions about security during the visit of the Cuban President (Dr Fidel Castro), who is scheduled to address the General Assembly on the recent summit meeting of nonaligned nations in Havana. For several tense hours.; spectators watched as Bau-j din flew low over denselypopulated Manhattan. He ignored pleas from the police to call off his stunt, and landed only after his publishers agreed to meet him. The “New York Daily News” reported that the' city's only afternoon newspaper. the “New York Post.” had known of the caper in advance, but had not warned the police. The “Daily News” said the stunt had been staged “in

, consultation with the ‘New York Post’,” and an F. 8.1. spokesman said the agency was looking into the role of the “New York Post.” Management at the news-I paper denied the allegation! although a spokesman said; the paper had been told by| Baudin “on a dozen different , occasions" of his intentions. The spokesman said his paper had not informed the, police of the pilot’s plan. “Every time he told us. iwe advised him he should [not do it, it was illegal, and we would have no part init,'’ he said. In a tape-recorded message sent on Tuesday to the; “New York Post,” Baudin complained that his publisher had not edited his! b >k satisfactorily and had' not promoted it. The publisher said 6000 copies of the book had been sold since it was published in April, and issued a statement saying: “Our relations with Mr Baudin have been

correct and not unpleasant.” The book describes his life of crime that ended, according to the author, with his! being charged in Australia with counterfeiting. The 'book said Baudin had served 15 months in jail there, i The United Nations incident was the second time Baudin had drawn attention! to himself by flying low .over a city in a small plane. I In February. 1969. thousands of Australian office: workers watched as he buz-; zed Sydney for more than i four hours, making swoops over the city’s harbour bridge and the site of the new opera house. He threat-1 ened to take a bottle of sleeping pills and crash at I sea unless forgery charges; against him were dropped. Baudin landed after the,! police assured him he would | be given every assistance in defending himself against, the accusations. He was jailed on charges of forging I United States dollar bills.