Two protesters climb on top of Empire State Building
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CNN
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Jul 1, 2026 #EmpireStateBuilding #NewYorkCity #News
Two people who reached the top of the Empire State Building’s spire in New York City on Wednesday afternoon are in custody, according to the New York Police Department. The individuals, who were masked, appeared to get engaged. Police officers climbed up the spire and met the two just before 1 p.m., according to CNN affiliate WABC. CNN’s Dana Bash and her Inside Politics panel react to the stunt and CNN chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst John Miller shares details about possible charges facing the two individuals. 0:00 Protesters hang off the top of the Empire State Building’s spire 1:23 The two individuals start climbing down 2:26 CNN senior national security analyst reacts to the stunt 4:22 The two masked individuals appear to get engaged 9:24 Emergency services officers climb up to meet the two individuals 10:06 CNN chief law enforcement analyst weighs in on potential charges
A couple known for scaling tall buildings climbed to the top of the needle of the Empire State Building on Wednesday and unfurled a large black flag that flapped in the breeze, about 1,450 feet above the city.
The couple, Angela Nikolau, 33, and Ivan Beerkus, 32, were arrested after the stunt, according to a law enforcement official. Ms. Nikolau was charged with burglary, according to a police document.
Ms. Nikolau posted a video on her Instagram account late Wednesday morning that showed a vertiginous view from a narrow platform and that was captioned “Currently at the Empire State Building.”
The message on the flag read, “When the power of love beats the love of power the world knows peace.”
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As they stood atop the skyscraper, Mr. Beerkus proposed to Ms. Nikolau, the law enforcement official said. A photo Ms. Nikolau posted to Instagram shows Mr. Beerkus getting down on one knee.
The law enforcement official gave Ms. Nikolau’s first name as Angelina and Mr. Beerkus’s surname as Kuznetsov, which appears to be his birth surname.
The couple were the subjects of a 2024 documentary, “Skywalkers: A Love Story,” about their romance and quest for thrills and fame. In 2022, they climbed Merdeka 118 in Malaysia, which is more than 2,000 feet tall.
Image
Angela Nikolau, 33, and Ivan Beerkus, 32, were arrested after the stunt, according to a law enforcement official.Credit...Ryan Murphy for The New York Times
The Empire State Building’s needle, which houses communications equipment and a very tall antenna, rises about 200 feet above the top floor of the building.
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It is a surface that is not frequently scaled. In 1994, the French climber Alain Robert did so, according to the Guinness World Records website.
Manhattan’s skyscrapers have long been magnets for climbers. Philippe Petit famously walked a tightrope between the towers of the World Trade Center in 1974. In 2014, a teenager climbed to the spire of the Freedom Tower, which was built on the site of the Twin Towers. In 2008, after three people — one of whom was Mr. Robert — climbed the New York Times Building in a matter of weeks, The Times removed some of the horizontal rods that climbers had used to scale it.
There have been sanctioned climbs, too.
In 2023, the actor Jared Leto scaled 18 floors of the Empire State Building, from the 86th floor to the top floor, with permission, to promote a world tour for his band Thirty Seconds to Mars. He then performed one of the band’s songs from the top of the building, an unofficial landing that is off limits to the public.
The couple, Angela Nikolau, 33, and Ivan Beerkus, 32, were arrested after the stunt, according to a law enforcement official. Ms. Nikolau was charged with burglary, according to a police document.
Ms. Nikolau posted a video on her Instagram account late Wednesday morning that showed a vertiginous view from a narrow platform and that was captioned “Currently at the Empire State Building.”
The message on the flag read, “When the power of love beats the love of power the world knows peace.”
Advertisement
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
As they stood atop the skyscraper, Mr. Beerkus proposed to Ms. Nikolau, the law enforcement official said. A photo Ms. Nikolau posted to Instagram shows Mr. Beerkus getting down on one knee.
The law enforcement official gave Ms. Nikolau’s first name as Angelina and Mr. Beerkus’s surname as Kuznetsov, which appears to be his birth surname.
The couple were the subjects of a 2024 documentary, “Skywalkers: A Love Story,” about their romance and quest for thrills and fame. In 2022, they climbed Merdeka 118 in Malaysia, which is more than 2,000 feet tall.
Image
Angela Nikolau, 33, and Ivan Beerkus, 32, were arrested after the stunt, according to a law enforcement official.Credit...Ryan Murphy for The New York Times
The Empire State Building’s needle, which houses communications equipment and a very tall antenna, rises about 200 feet above the top floor of the building.
Advertisement
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
It is a surface that is not frequently scaled. In 1994, the French climber Alain Robert did so, according to the Guinness World Records website.
Manhattan’s skyscrapers have long been magnets for climbers. Philippe Petit famously walked a tightrope between the towers of the World Trade Center in 1974. In 2014, a teenager climbed to the spire of the Freedom Tower, which was built on the site of the Twin Towers. In 2008, after three people — one of whom was Mr. Robert — climbed the New York Times Building in a matter of weeks, The Times removed some of the horizontal rods that climbers had used to scale it.
There have been sanctioned climbs, too.
In 2023, the actor Jared Leto scaled 18 floors of the Empire State Building, from the 86th floor to the top floor, with permission, to promote a world tour for his band Thirty Seconds to Mars. He then performed one of the band’s songs from the top of the building, an unofficial landing that is off limits to the public.
