A green giant: This year's 74-foot Rockefeller Christmas tree is en route from Massachusetts

WEST STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — A giant Norway spruce that will serve as this year’s Rockefeller Christmas tree was en route to New York City on Thursday from its tiny Massachusetts hometown.

The 74-foot-high (23-meter-high) conifer was cut down Thursday morning in West Stockbridge and hoisted onto a flatbed truck by crane. It will travel 140 miles (225 kilometers) to Rockefeller Center, where it will be erected on Saturday. The tree, to feature 50,000 multi-colored lights and a Swarovski star crown, will remain on display until mid-January.

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A Norway Spruce that will serve as this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is placed on a flatbed, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024 in West Stockbridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh)

Workers are seen inside the branches of a Norway Spruce that will serve as this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is readied to be cut down and lowered with a crane on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024 in West Stockbridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh)

A Norway Spruce that will serve as this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is cut down, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024 in West Stockbridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh)

A Norway Spruce that will serve as this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is placed on a flatbed, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024 in West Stockbridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh)

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A Norway Spruce that will serve as this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is placed on a flatbed, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024 in West Stockbridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh)

Workers are seen inside the branches of a Norway Spruce that will serve as this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is readied to be cut down and lowered with a crane on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024 in West Stockbridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh)

A Norway Spruce that will serve as this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is cut down, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024 in West Stockbridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh)

A Norway Spruce that will serve as this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is placed on a flatbed, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024 in West Stockbridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh)

The first Rockefeller Center Christmas tree to come from Massachusetts since 1959, the towering spruce has drawn plenty of attention in West Stockbridge. Locals and tourist alike have flocked to see the 11-ton (10-metric ton) tree in recent days, as workers high up in the canopy prepped it for its trip to New York.

Town residents and outside visitors, some dressed as Santa Claus, watched from behind a barrier as workers felled the tree Thursday morning. As the observers took photos and made videos of the event, the local family that donated the tree granted interviews to the news media.

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peruvian police arrested the head of the country's soccer federation Thursday as part of an investigation into fraud, extortion, money laundering and other crimes.

Agustín Lozano is the second Peruvian soccer boss to be detained since 2018 when his predecessor was investigated for his alleged role in two murders for which he was later absolved.

Lozano was escorted handcuffed into a police vehicle outside his home in the capital, Lima, as several journalists stood by. He promised to clear up any misunderstanding and asked that the public reserve judgements.

Six other people were also arrested.

A prosecutor overseeing the case told local radio that Lozano has been under investigation for over a year. Although he has not been criminally charged, authorities ordered his arrest because they deemed he is a flight risk and could obstruct their investigation.

Lozano has had run-ins with the law before. In 2023, prosecutors sought his arrest as part of an embezzlement investigation from his days as mayor of the northern city of Chongoyape.

Under Lozano's leadership, Peru's national soccer team is in second to last place among South American men's teams seeking to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

A green giant: This year's 74-foot Rockefeller Christmas tree is en route from Massachusetts

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