The man started climbing around 3:45 p.m., and made it to the 21st floor before being captured. He used some sort of suction cups to scale the 68-story Trump Tower in midtown Wednesday afternoon.
Emergency Service workers and NYPD broke a window early on near the man and were lowering a window washer scaffolding in an attempt to reach him, but he eluded them and climbed several more floors before officers tried again and were successful. The climber made his way up the glass facade on the south side of the building with the contraption involving ropes and suction cups, according to PIX 11.
He was caught around 6:40 p.m.
Social media reports indicate the man told police his name is Steve and he's from Virginia. A spoof Twitter account has already been launched pretending to be him, and the hashtag #stevefromvirginia is picking up steam. There are also reports that he recorded a YouTube video on Tuesday announcing that he would climb the building. Police have not confirmed that the climber created the video, titled "Message to Mr. Trump (why I climbed your tower)."
In the video, the man apologizes for his appearance as he'd "rather not be recognizable."
The man says he's an independent researcher seeking a meeting with Donald Trump regarding an important matter.
"Believe me, if my purpose was not significant, I would not risk my life pursuing it," the man says.
He then goes on to say that the reason he climbed the tower was to get Trump's attention.
"If I had sought this through conventional means, I would be much less likely to have success because you are a busy man with many responsibilities," he says.
Trump Tower is located at East 56th Street.
It’s not the first time a daredevil has taken to climbing a skyscraper in New York City. In 1977, George Willig scaled 2 World Trade Center, one of the 110-story Twin Towers.
As recently as 2008, the New York Times building was scaled by three different men over a few days in June 2008.
The tower, which was completed in 1983 at the site of the former Bonwit Teller department store, is Donald Trump’s official residence. Offices in the tower also serve as headquarters for the Republican party’s presidential campaign.
The Trump campaign has not issued a statement on the climber.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
