Two Netflix-featured daredevils charged with burglary and reckless endangerment for scaling the Empire State Building's antenna walked out of a Manhattan courtroom and made out for the press, treating felony charges like a photo op.
Ivan Kuznetsov, 32, and Angelina Nikolau, 33, appeared in Manhattan Criminal Court on Monday to answer for their July 1 stunt, in which prosecutors say they broke a lock on a 104th-floor security door, climbed to the top of the building's broadcast antenna, roughly 1,454 feet above Midtown, and unfurled a banner before Kuznetsov proposed. They left the courthouse arm in arm, stopping to kiss in front of a swarm of reporters and photographers, as though the whole proceeding were another content shoot.
The couple, who live in East Orange, New Jersey, face felony charges of burglary, reckless endangerment, criminal mischief, and criminal tampering. If convicted, they could face up to seven years in prison, the New York Post reported. The case was adjourned until September, and Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Jessica Waldman told the court that prosecutors are in "active plea discussions" with the defense.
The stunt was not spontaneous. Law enforcement sources told the Washington Examiner that Kuznetsov and Nikolau bought tickets the night before and hid inside the Empire State Building overnight before making their climb. Prosecutors allege they broke a lock on a restricted-access security door on the 104th floor to reach the antenna.
NYPD bodycam footage, reported by Fox News Digital, showed officers making their way up the skyscraper and encountering the masked couple at the top, apparently without harnesses. No one was injured, but the stunt forced the building's broadcast antenna to be powered down. The couple caused an estimated $2,000 in damage.
At the summit, they unfurled a banner reading "When the power of love beats the love of power the world knows peace." Then Kuznetsov proposed, and Nikolau was later seen displaying her engagement ring from nearly 1,500 feet in the air.
Assistant District Attorney Anthony Giliberti framed the conduct in blunter terms. Breitbart reported his statement to the court:
"These activities continually create a risk to their own lives, as well as the lives of New Yorkers and first responders."
The couple's defense attorney, Jason Krinsky, took a different view. AP News reported his remarks outside the courtroom:
"What a way to propose, something you can only dream of. So you've got to, you know, give him some credit for that."
Krinsky also framed the trespassing as a "message of love." When a journalist asked Kuznetsov about the stunt, he offered three words: "We believe in love."
Both were released on supervised bail after their arraignment. No cash bail was required.
Two days before Monday's court date, Nikolau posted a lengthy statement on Instagram that read less like a defendant preparing for arraignment and more like a manifesto:
"We believe that humanity has always been moved forward by those who refused to accept existing boundaries as final. Those who asked uncomfortable questions, took risks, and kept moving toward the impossible. The world without people like that would be much quieter. But we're not sure it would be better Whatever happens in court, we will respect the process and accept the consequences of our choices."
After leaving court Monday, Nikolau told reporters: "Everything can be taken, except this."
The couple are the subjects of a 2024 Netflix documentary called "Skywalkers: A Love Story," which chronicles their history of unauthorized climbs on tall buildings around the world. The film helped make them internationally known figures in the "rooftopping" subculture, a community built on trespassing on skyscrapers for social media content.
The charges are serious on paper. Burglary in New York can carry years behind bars, and the reckless endangerment count is a felony. But the trajectory of the case already suggests something softer. Prosecutors confirmed active plea negotiations. The couple walked out of court without bail. And their attorney is publicly praising the romance of the crime rather than contesting the facts.
Newsmax reported that police found the broken lock on the 104th-floor security door, and the couple was arrested after descending from the antenna. The building, one of the most recognizable landmarks in the country, had its broadcast systems disrupted while first responders dealt with the situation.
The open questions are straightforward. Will Manhattan prosecutors treat this like the felony it is charged as, or will the plea deal quietly reduce it to something that lets the couple walk away with content and a ring? And what message does supervised release send to the next social media daredevil eyeing a New York City landmark?
When breaking into a building, forcing an emergency response, and racking up criminal charges earns you a kiss on the courthouse steps and a Netflix special, the system is telling people exactly what it rewards, and it is not respect for the law.
