{"id":15357,"date":"2026-07-01T21:50:21","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T21:50:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=15357"},"modified":"2026-07-01T21:50:21","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T21:50:21","slug":"skywalkers-daredevil-couple-arrested-after-empire-state-building-climb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=15357","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Skywalkers&#8217; Daredevil Couple Arrested After Empire State Building Climb"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"justify-start\">\n<nav class=\"align-left col-span-full mb-base\" data-pom-e2e-test-id=\"breadcrumbs\"\/>\n<p>Dressed in all black and defying New York law, urban climbers Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus took their viral &#8220;rooftopping&#8221; romance to the absolute pinnacle of Manhattan\u2014and descended in police custody.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/p>\n<p class=\"fp-leadCaption py-tight text-left font-utility text-utility3-size leading-utility3-line-height text-secondary\">Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus starred in the 2024 Netflix documentary, &#8220;Skywalkers&#8221;<!-- --> (Photo: Jason Mendez\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-body\">\n<p>Published July 1, 2026 02:19PM<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cThis film contains extremely dangerous and illegal activities. Do not attempt to imitate.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s the opening of a 2024 Netflix documentary,<em> <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.netflix.com\/title\/81758544\">Skywalkers: A Love Story<\/a><\/em>, which showcases the highs and lows of a Russian daredevil couple who rose to fame by climbing what they called \u201cthe last super skyscraper on the planet,\u201d Malaysia\u2019s 2,227-foot building Merdeka 118, in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>Now, four years later, Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus are in police custody in New York. On July 1, Nikolau, 33, and Beerkus, 32, climbed to the top of the Empire State Building and stayed on the top spire for several minutes. They unfurled a black-and-white banner that appeared to reference a Jimi Hendrix quote: \u201cWhen the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Clad in all black and face masks, the couple appears in photos they <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DaQhEGbjbHT\/?img_index=1\">posted<\/a> on Instagram\u2014Beerkus is kneeling on one knee, a hand over his heart. There appears to be an engagement ring on Nikolau\u2019s hand, a sea of skyscrapers far below.<\/p>\n<p><iframe style=\"width:100%;border:none;display:block\" title=\"Script Content\" async=\"\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Police closed down streets between 5th Avenue and 34th Street in Manhattan following the event, the agency said in a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/NYPDnews\/status\/2072361157021569168\">statement<\/a>. The Empire State Building stands 1,454 feet tall from the base of its antenna to the top of its tip. According to <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/codelibrary.amlegal.com\/codes\/newyorkcity\/latest\/NYCadmin\/0-0-0-207599?utm_source=chatgpt.com\">New York law<\/a>, it is illegal to \u201cclimb or attempt to climb up, down or around the exterior of a structure\u201d exceeding 50 feet, unless the owner has granted permission for construction or maintenance.<\/p>\n<p>Police have not stated what the two were arrested for.<\/p>\n<p>In the Netflix documentary, Nikolau paints herself as a revolutionary daredevil, bringing women to a male-dominated field. A former gymnast-turned-climber\u2014and the daughter of circus performers\u2014she gained notoriety on social media for scaling the world\u2019s tallest buildings without ropes or safety gear.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLimits only exist in our minds,\u201d Nikolau says in the film.<\/p>\n<p>To access their feats, they describe picking locks, using staff elevators\u2014which they say often lack security cameras\u2014and dressing up in construction apparel to fit in. If it\u2019s an apartment building? Dress as the locals do, they say.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re not vandals,\u201d Nikolau says in the film.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAlthough technically, we are criminals,\u201d Beerkus responds.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2746430\" class=\"pom-image-wrap photo-alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Ivan Beerkus and Angela Nikolau attend Netflix's Skywalkers: A Love Story Tribeca Film Festival Premiere in 2024\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"709\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2746430\" style=\"color:transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2157475623.jpg?width=1080&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover 1x, https:\/\/cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2157475623.jpg?width=2048&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover 2x\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2157475623.jpg?width=2048&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover\"\/><figcaption class=\"pom-caption\"><span class=\"article__caption\">Ivan Beerkus and Angela Nikolau attend Netflix\u2019s Skywalkers: A Love Story Tribeca Film Festival Premiere in 2024<\/span> (Photo: Jason Mendez\/Getty Images for Netflix)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Nikolau and Beerkus are \u201crooftoppers,\u201d a class of death-defying athletes who scale tall, often off-limits structures like skyscrapers, construction cranes, and bridges. Rooftopping, sometimes called roofing, is an extreme form of urban climbing in which participants leave their climbing and safety gear behind.<\/p>\n<p>A rule the duo says they adopted is never staying on top of a building for more than 15 minutes\u2014that gives authorities enough time to get to the scene. In Paris, the two spent the night in jail after illegally climbing the Notre Dame cathedral.<\/p>\n<p>But atop an iconic skyscraper in one of the world\u2019s largest cities, the two were quickly spotted during their July stunt. ABC 7 News in New York <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/abc7ny.com\/post\/2-people-climb-top-empire-state-building-pro-peace-banner\/19429181\/\">reported<\/a> that at least two highly trained New York Police Department Emergency Service Unit officers responded to the scene, harnessed themselves, and climbed to meet Nikolau and Beerkus halfway up the spire. The two were reportedly put into custody just before 1 P.M. local time.<\/p>\n<p>The NYPD is reportedly reviewing surveillance from the Empire State Building, which suggests the couple accessed the spire from the 102nd-floor maintenance hatch, possibly by breaking a lock.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey likely had been observing staff movements,\u201d ABC 7 News reported.<\/p>\n<p>In a statement shared with ABC 7 News, the Empire State Building wrote, \u201cThere was at no time danger to tenants, visitors, and Empire State Building Observation Deck guests. It is to be emphasized that the Empire State Building Observation Deck, atop the World\u2019s Most Famous Building in the center of New York City, does offer a practical way for the most memorable marriage proposals.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In a post shared on Facebook, the Empire State Building pointed out that the tourist destination welcomes marriage proposals\u2014legally, atop the observation deck.<\/p>\n<p><em>Outside<\/em> contacted the couple for comment and will update this story if one is received.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><span hidden=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.outsideonline.com\/outdoor-adventure\/climbing\/skywalkers-netflix-couple-arrested-empire-state-building\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dressed in all black and defying New York law, urban climbers Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus took their viral &#8220;rooftopping&#8221; romance to the absolute pinnacle of Manhattan\u2014and descended in police custody. Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus starred in the 2024 Netflix documentary, &#8220;Skywalkers&#8221; (Photo: Jason Mendez\/Getty Images) Published July 1, 2026 02:19PM \u201cThis film contains<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15358,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15357","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wild-living"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15357","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15357"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15357\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/15358"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15357"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15357"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15357"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}