Man held after ‘setting fire to papers’ inside court hosting Trump civil trial

New York firefighters walk up to the entrance of New York Supreme Court (Robert Bumsted/AP)

A man has been arrested for setting fire to papers inside the New York City courthouse where former US president Donald Trump’s civil business fraud trial has been taking place, leading to a brief evacuation of the building.

Firefighters arrived at the New York State Supreme Court Building in lower Manhattan shortly after 4pm local time on Wednesday to respond to an alarm on the fourth floor of the building.