James Brady, Kyle Hartwell, Marko Markovich and Andrew Rossig are the four New York City-area men who were arrested on Monday for BASE jumping from the top of One World Trade Center back in September.

One World Trade BASE Jumpers Arrested

Brady, Hartwell, Markovich and Rossig have all been charged with burglary, reckless endangerment and jumping from a structure, according to NYPD Commissioner William Bratton.

"These men violated the law and placed themselves, as well as others, in danger," Bratton stated. "These arrests should send a message to anyone thinking about misusing a landmark this way."

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns the trade center, also released a statement censuring the four men.

“The Port Authority joins the NYPD in condemning this lawless and selfish act that clearly endangered the public," said Port Authority Chief Security Officer Joseph Dunne. "It should be clear that the PAPD and NYPD will go to any length to bring those who defile the WTC site to justice."

Lawyer Defends Base Jumpers

Brady, Markovich and Rossig slipped through a gap in the fence and scaled One World Trade, officially the tallest building in the U.S., on September 30 while Hartwell kept a look out down below, according to Rossig’s attorney Timothy Parlatore. From 1,300 feet high, the three men leapt, parachuting to a vacant intersection.

“They were very professional, very controlled. There was nothing haphazard or reckless about it,” Parlatore told CNN. "One of the first things my client said to me was that how surprised he was at how there was no security whatsoever — how easy it was to just walk right up there in something that the mayor has just recently described as the No. 1 terrorist target in the world.”

One of the jumpers, James Brady, had been working construction on the One World Trade Center site at the time of their stunt.

A week ago, police arrested and charged 16-year-old daredevil Justin Casquejo with trespassing after he was caught descending One World Trade. He too claimed to have gotten into the site through a hole in the fence.

– Chelsea Regan

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