Man scales Trump Tower in New York using suction cups
A man was captured on Facebook Live scaling the glassy heights of Trump Tower in New York Wednesday, using suction cups to move across the windows.
With police watching helplessly below and passersby stopping to take photos and video, he navigated his way across the side of the building. The man was eventually pulled into the building through a window shortly after 6:30 p.m. local time.
He reportedly started his stunt on the East 56th Street side of the infamous building, which is the headquarters for the Trump Organization and the mother lode of all things Donald Trump. The presidential candidate lives there when he's not on the road campaigning.
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Witnesses said the man began his ascent from a roof garden accessible to the public and was carrying a bunch of papers. Wearing a backpack, he used ropes and a harness to fasten himself to the side of the 58-story Manhattan skyscraper.
Onlookers gawped as he continued his perilous climb. Facebook user Peter Shankman captured the early parts of his climb.
Footage on Vine earlier appeared to show a pane of glass falling past the climber.
Police officers smashed windows and broke through a ventilation duct in an attempt to block his progress, the Associated Press reports.
Officers lowered themselves toward him using a window washer's platform.
The New York Police Department deployed airbags at ground level under the climber.
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Fox News reported the man is named Steve.
A video circulating online Wednesday appeared to show a man of similar appearance explaining why he climbed the tower. Posted to YouTube on Aug. 9, the clip shows a man in a hoodie addressing Trump, saying he is a private researcher seeking a meeting with the candidate.
“The reason I climbed your tower was to get your attention," he says. "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.”
The clip ends with the speaker urging people to vote for Trump in November.
The Trump Organization's Executive Vice President Michael Cohen has issued a statement regarding the climber:
This man performed a ridiculous and dangerous stunt. There's damage to the building and he caused the unnecessary deployment of New York's finest to protect his safety and the safety of everyone in the building. He's caused the shutdown of traffic on Fifth Avenue. I'm 100 percent certain the NYPD had better things to do. If Mr Trump were here he'd be thanking law enforcement for the job they're doing.
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Later in the evening, a huge police prescence was still visible around the tower.
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Topics Donald Trump
Tim Chester was Senior Editor, Real Time News in Los Angeles. Before that he was Deputy Editor of Mashable UK in London. Prior to joining Mashable, Tim was a Senior Web Editor at Penguin Random House, helping to relaunch the Rough Guides website and other travel brands. He was also a writer for Buzzfeed, GQ and The Sunday Times, covering everything from culture to tech and current affairs. Before that, he was Deputy Editor at NME.COM, overseeing content and development on the London-based music and entertainment site. Tim loves music and travel and has combined these two passions at festivals from Iceland to Malawi and beyond.
