A New York City building inspector has been charged with lying about checking on a construction crane that later collapsed, killing seven people in a dense Manhattan neighbourhood, officials said Thursday.

Edward Marquette was arrested Wednesday on charges of falsifying business records, buildings Commissioner Patricia Lancaster said.

"We will not tolerate this kind of behaviour at the Department of Buildings," she said.

A complaint about the crane was logged March 4 to a city hotline, officials said, and Marquette said he inspected it. It was later determined he had not.

However, Lancaster said it is very unlikely an inspection would have prevented the accident because the parts of the crane that failed were not on site on March 4.

Marquette, 46, was arraigned in state Supreme Court and released without bail. His lawyer, Kate Moguletscu, had no comment as she left court.

Lancaster said that in addition to suspending Marquette, she has ordered a full audit of his inspection reports over the past six months, and also of the cranes and derricks unit of the department.

The collapse pulverized a brownstone and damaged several other buildings.

The gigantic piece of machinery toppled when a steel collar used to secure the crane to the building came loose, plunging into another collar that acted as a major anchor. Without that support, it came tumbling down with terrifying force.

The collapse followed weeks of complaints by people in the neighbourhood that the crane didn't appear safe.