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How A NJ Teenager Sneaked Up To The Top Of 1 WTC
By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 20, 2014
Modified Mar 20, 2014
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By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 20, 2014
Modified Mar 20, 2014
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Fans of heist movies know that every security system, no matter how elaborate, always has a soft spot. Sometimes all it takes is a pretty young woman to flirt with a bored guard, or merely claiming you're a caterer who's late for work. For obvious reasons, 1 WTC Center is supposed to be impenetrable and secure, but for 16-year-old Justin Casquejo all it took was finding a hole in a fence to slip through like he was sneaking into a junkyard to shoot some rats.
At approximately 4 a.m. on Sunday Casquejo found a hole in the fence surrounding America's tallest skyscraper, which is still under construction, and simply climbed through. Despite his lack of ID, an elevator operator happily took the teen up to the 88th floor, and then Casquejo proceeded on foot to the top of the building, past a sleeping security guard and all the way to the spire. Many selfies ensued.
"He came here and he ran hog wild," a WTC worker told the Post. The Port Authority says he spent at least an hour on top before he was detained by a construction worker who stopped him on his way back down. When questioned by police, Casquejo reportedly said, "I walked around the construction site and figured out how to access the Freedom Tower rooftop." He's charged with trespassing.
The security guard was fired, while the elevator operator was reassigned, according to the Post. (A Port Authority spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.) The high-profile security breach brings to mind French tightrope walker Philippe Petit, who infiltrated the Twin Towers before construction was complete and walked on a wire between the two skyscrapers. A documentary about his adventure, Man on Wire, is definitely worth watching.
Tagged
1WTC
one world trade center
ring of steel
security
teenagers
world trade center
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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