Just hours after we learned that three men skydived off the World Trade Center in September, we can all get a look at what it’s like to jump from a 1,776-foot tower without risking death or prosecution. After turning themselves in on Monday afternoon, BASE jumpers Andrew Rossig, James Brady, Marco Markovich, and lookout Kyle Hartwell posted a helmet-cam video, which police are using as evidence, to YouTube. (The jumps start two and a half minutes in, after some mildly NSFW language.)
Rossig’s attorney, Timothy Parlatore, told the Daily News that if the video generates any money, they’ll donate the proceeds to a charity for families of 9/11 victims. “This was never intended to be a publicity stunt,” Parlatore said. “However, since the police department has turned it into something of a spectacle, the defendants are hoping the video can be used for some good.”
Newsday reports that the four men were charged with third-degree burglary, second-degree reckless endangerment, and jumping from a structure. They were released Monday night on $3,500 bail.
Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said the arrests should “send a message to anyone thinking about misusing a landmark this way,” adding, “Being a thrill-seeker does not give immunity from the law.” Rossig suggested the fact that they were able to access one of the world’s biggest terrorist targets through a hole in a fence is the bigger issue. “We just kind of walked in,” Rossig said. “It’s supposed to be the most secure building in the world. God forbid it was somebody else getting in there with a real intention to harm New Yorkers.”
