New York City: A man and a woman scaled the Empire State Building before dawn on Tuesday, reached the 86th floor observation deck, and got engaged. Moments later, police arrested them. Sources confirm the couple bypassed security and used a maintenance staircase to reach the top.
They posed for photos with a ring before officers took them into custody. The man, identified as Jake Thompson, 34, a personal trainer from Brooklyn, faces trespassing and reckless endangerment charges. The woman, Emily Rose, 29, a yoga instructor, avoided charges due to a deal with prosecutors.
This stunt is the latest in a series of brazen climbs targeting iconic New York landmarks. Security experts question how the couple evaded detection for nearly an hour. The Empire State Building’s security team, already under scrutiny after a similar incident last year, faces renewed questions about vulnerabilities.
Uncovered documents from a 2023 audit reveal that alarms on service doors were non-functional for months. The building’s management declined to comment. Thompson’s lawyer claims the climb was a “romantic gesture” and not a security threat.
But sources say prosecutors are pushing for a sentence that includes community service and a ban from the building. The couple’s social media accounts, now removed, showed posts planning the climb for weeks. This incident raises serious concerns about unaccountable power in corporate security decisions.
Who pays when a romantic proposal becomes a criminal act? The answer might lie in the fine print of insurance policies and liability waivers. For now, Thompson sits in a cell while his fiancee plans a wedding from outside.
The ring? Confiscated as evidence.
