By Shimon Prokupecz
NEW YORK (CNN) — In another security lapse at the Brooklyn Bridge, the New York Police Department arrested a man Sunday afternoon after he scaled the historical structure, a senior law enforcement official said.
Security at the bridge was recently heightened after American flags atop the two towers of the bridge were stolen in July and replaced by white flags.
The latest security breach occurred Sunday afternoon when a 24-year-old self-described thrill seeker visiting from Russia scaled the bridge and reached the top of one of the towers, where he snapped several photos with his iPhone, the senior law enforcement official said.
Yaroslav Kolchin, who was visiting from Moscow, had been staying at a Manhattan hotel when sometime Sunday he decided he wanted to scale the bridge for thrills and take photos, the official said.
An NYPD sergeant stationed at the bridge saw someone climb over a security fence and then head toward the top of the span.
The sergeant immediately called for additional units, including an NYPD helicopter, to try to get the climber down.
Eventually, he came down the bridge on his own without incident, where awaiting officers took him into custody.
He has not yet been charged.
A pair of German artists claimed responsibility for the July stunt on top of the bridge, saying it was nothing more than an “art project” meant to deal with “questions of historical legacy and art in the public sphere.”
