Man arrested after jumping off Eiffel Tower with a parachute
Cars drive past the Eiffel Tower in Paris on August 16
By Niamh Kennedy, CNN
(CNN) — Police in Paris have arrested a man for jumping off the Eiffel Tower with a parachute on Thursday, according to CNN affiliate BFMTV.
A man scaled a pillar of the iconic landmark early morning local time, BFMTV reported, citing police sources.
The tower’s management company, SETE (Société d’Exploitation de la tour Eiffel) said the man was detected in “less than a minute” by security after entering the site. Attempts by the tower’s intervention brigade to deter him proved unsuccessful and he went ahead with his jump from the attraction.
He landed on the roof of a nearby sports center before being arrested by police, according to BFMTV.
SETE lodged a complaint following Thursday’s incident. In their statement, they condemned “this type of irresponsible action, which endangers those working on or under the structure,” according to BFMTV.
The tower was slightly delayed in opening on Thursday morning due to the incident, according to BFMTV.
The incident is the latest in a series of security incidents over the past week at the site.
Two American men were discovered on Monday after spending a drunken night up the Eiffel Tower, the monument’s management told CNN.
The two men, who had Sunday evening tickets for Paris’ famous iron tower, were “allegedly trapped there due to their excessive alcohol consumption,” the Paris prosecutor’s office said.
And on Saturday, the tower was evacuated for several hours over a bomb threat.
The three floors of the tower, as well as the courtyard, were evacuated while authorities assessed the threat, BFMTV reported.
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