Angela Nikolau, 33 and her fiance Ivan Kuznetsov, 32, spent the night in jail after scaling the Empire State Building’s antenna, where Kuznetsov proposed more than 1,000 feet above the ground.
During the stunt, the couple, dressed in dark clothing and masks and also displayed a flag that read, “When the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace.” They have now been hit with a long list of criminal charges.
What are the charges against the daredevil couple
According to NBC News, the couple were each charged with first-degree reckless endangerment, second-degree criminal mischief and an additional charge related to climbing the nearly 1,500-foot-tall building on Wednesday, as per a criminal complaint filed by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
Both pleaded not guilty. Their case is not bail eligible, so they will remain free under supervised release rather than in custody as they await a potential trial.
The pair were hit with burglary, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief charges, all felonies, in addition to misdemeanor counts of possession of burglary tools, trespass and criminal tampering.
Their attorney, Jason Krinsky has argued that prosecutors overcharged them and said there was no evidence of burglary tools. “Even the building’s own people, the Empire State’s own people, said there was no risk to tenants, guests on the observation deck or anyone in the building,” Krinsky said, as per New York Post.
How the couple pulled off the stunt
According to law-enforcement sources cited by the New York Post, the couple bought tickets at 9pm on Tuesday and are believed to have stayed hidden inside the Empire State Building overnight. The next morning, around 5am, video showed them coming out through a hatch on the 102nd floor, the sources said. The sources also said Kuznetsov used tools to loosen metal cable brackets near a stairwell, allowing the pair to enter a restricted area.
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According to reports, Empire State Building security alerted police at about 11:15am after a “possible breach of security at the antenna located atop” the building. The complaint says the antenna emits high-frequency radio signals that are powerful enough to harm the human body. Authorities had to switch off the antenna before members of the NYPD Emergency Services Unit could reach the couple, a process that took about 30 minutes. Officers then climbed 1,250 feet to reach them. Police said Nikolau and Kuznetsov “persisted in remaining on or near the broadcast antenna, from which they could not be easily extricated, and in doing so they had placed the officers in a highly dangerous situation,” according to the complaint.
Additionally, reaching the antenna required passing through several restricted areas, including a secure door that can only be opened with a key card. Police also found that a lock leading to the broadcast antenna had been broken, causing about $2,000 in damage.
