Russian “Rooftopper” Couple Arrested After Death-Defying Climb And Proposal Atop Empire State Building

Angela Nikolau, 33, and her partner Ivan Kuznetsov, 32, known online as Ivan Beerkus, reportedly slipped past security at the iconic skyscraper on Wednesday, climbing through a maintenance hatch on the 103rd floor before ascending the antenna that broadcasts radio and television signals across New York City.

The pair, residents of East Orange, New Jersey, breached the spire area at around 11:15 a.m. before beginning their climb.

Dressed head-to-toe in black and wearing masks, the couple reached the very top of the tower and fastened a large black-and-white banner with a message aimed squarely at a world in turmoil: “When the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace,” a line often attributed to Jimi Hendrix.

Then came the twist. After roughly half an hour perched on the narrow ledge, the couple shared a kiss before Kuznetsov got down on one knee and proposed with a ring, which Nikolau accepted.

She later posted photos of the ring glinting against the Manhattan skyline to her social media.

The stunt is nothing new for the pair, who are known globally as “rooftoppers,” thrill-seekers who scale skyscrapers without ropes or safety harnesses, often bypassing security to do so.

They were the subject of the 2024 Netflix documentary “Skywalkers: A Love Story,” which followed their unauthorized climbs of towers including China’s Goldin Finance 117 and Malaysia’s Merdeka 118.

Their New York adventure, however, came with real risk beyond the obvious fall danger.

Because the antenna was actively transmitting broadcast signals at the time, engineers warned of possible exposure to radio-frequency radiation and high-voltage electrical hazards.

The Empire State Building reportedly shut down the antenna as a precaution once the climbers were spotted.

Officers from the NYPD‘s Emergency Service Unit harnessed in and met the couple partway down the spire, taking them into custody without incident just before 1 p.m.

Both now face a lengthy list of charges, including burglary, reckless endangerment, criminal mischief, criminal tampering, criminal trespass, possession of burglar’s tools, and disorderly conduct.

Despite the chaos, the Empire State Building’s management struck a lighthearted tone in the aftermath, with its social media team joking that the tower offered “a practical way for the most memorable marriage proposals,” while stressing that visitors and tenants were never in danger.

Nikolau and Kuznetsov are due to be arraigned Thursday morning in New York.