Man hangs off side of Chicago's Trump Tower for 13 hours before being taken into custody

He hung on a rope for 13 hours, saying he needed to speak with the president.
A man was taken into custody early on Oct. 19, 2020, after hanging off the side of Trump Tower from a rope for 13 hours, demanding to speak to President Donald Trump.
A man was taken into custody early on Oct. 19, 2020, after hanging off the side of Trump Tower from a rope for 13 hours, demanding to speak to President Donald Trump.NBC Chicago

A man clung to a rope off Trump Tower in Chicago for 13 hours, demanding an audience with the president, before he was safely taken into custody, authorities said Monday.

The man, who appeared to be in his 20s, was first spotted at about 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, dangling from a 16th-floor landing of Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago, police said.

The "situation resolved peacefully by" negotiators and the "suspect in custody" with no injuries, Chicago police spokesman Ahern tweeted.

When police finally managed to talk the man into surrendering, he pulled himself up to the landing where one officer held out a hand and grabbed the climber.

That helping hand brought the man on to the landing, before three more officers swooped in to take him into custody.

The 98-floor building has a prominent spot in the Windy City skyline at 401 N. Wabash Ave.

SWAT negotiators spent hours in "dialog with the individual" so as to "bring a positive conclusion to this situation," Ahern had said.

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