Teen's climb to World Trade spire a glimpse into 'parkour' youth culture
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| New York
Just before dawn this past Sunday, a skinny New Jersey teen with a daredevil鈥檚 love of heights allegedly wiggled through a one-by-one-foot hole in the fence surrounding One World Trade Center. He made his way past two security guards and went all the way up to the symbolic spire of America鈥檚 tallest building, built to be an icon of freedom.
For two hours, the 16-year-old, identified as Justin Casquejo from Weehawken, took in the panoramic view and snapped photos of the glistening night-lit landscape, authorities said, . When he made his way back down, a construction worker stopped him and called Port Authority police, who took him into custody and charged him with misdemeanor trespassing. His cellphone and camera were confiscated.
The youthful exploit jolted officials in charge of security at ground zero, the site of the . 鈥淲e take security and these types of infractions extremely seriously and will prosecute violators," said Joseph Dunne, chief security officer for the Port Authority, . "We continue to reassess our security posture at the site and are constantly working to make this site as secure as possible."
But the stunt appears to represent something entirely different to Justin.
Based on his Twitter feed and those linked to his friends 鈥 as well as photos posted previously on social media sites 鈥 the teen is apparently part of a daredevil 鈥減arkour鈥 crew called 鈥淭eam Destiny.鈥 It鈥檚 a group of fearless teens who apparently sneak into high places, especially at construction sites, and take photos of their exploits.
Parkour, originally a French word, is a daring pastime born on urban streets, in which young adventurers, skateboarders, and others use public spaces as a rebels鈥 playground. The more daring and reckless the exploit, the more 鈥渟treet cred鈥 a player gains.
Kids who engage in parkour often post their feats on social media sites, including YouTube. Justin鈥檚 social media accounts that appear to be taken at the top of public buildings with a panoramic view. In particular, his Facebook and Twitter accounts posted earlier this month of another apparent dangerous climb, to the top of a Weehawken construction crane.
The teen is also shown gazing and pointing at One World Trade as he stands across the Hudson.
As news of the exploit broke, Justin tweeted Thursday morning, 鈥淪hout out to my parkour team Destiny.鈥
Comments apparently by the crew reveal an attitude of fun-loving youthful recklessness, detached from the seriousness of the breach in site security.
鈥淗aha team destiny is going places,鈥 was a , @BabyDickSteve, who was linked to Justin鈥檚 鈥渟hout out鈥 tweet.
鈥淎hhh! This is just the beginning! Let's goo!!!!!!鈥, @KingTjay1, posting a news story about his Twitter friend鈥檚 new infamy.
As word of Justin鈥檚 feat spread through the Twitterverse, the tag #FreeJustin was already gaining support from like-minded youths across the nation, many gushing about the One World Trade parkour.
Justin is no longer in custody, however.
According to , the teen had canvassed ground zero and planned his exploit carefully.
鈥淚 walked around the construction site and figured out how to access the Freedom Tower rooftop,鈥 he told police afterward. 鈥淚 found a way up through the scaffolding, climbed onto the sixth floor, and took the elevator up to the 88th floor. I then took the staircase up to 104th (floor). I went to the rooftop and climbed the ladder all the way to the antenna.鈥
After he apparently found the small opening in the perimeter fence, an unsuspecting elevator operator brought Justin 鈥 who was without ID and may have donned construction apparel 鈥 to the 88th floor. Here, the teen walked passed a sleeping security guard before making his way to the spire.
The elevator operator has since been reassigned, and the sleeping guard was fired.
As officials grapple with this major breach in security at the World Trade Center site, where terrorist attacks destroyed the twin towers on Sept. 11, 2001, Justin remained jubilant when contacted by reporters.
鈥淗a ha, oh yeah, that. Right. I would really love to talk to you guys because I have a lot that I want to say about it,鈥 he told the Post. 鈥淚 was told that I just can鈥檛 [talk] without permission.鈥
On Wednesday, he summed up his adventure in a one-word tweet: 鈥淚nspired.鈥