By Michele Evans
NY Weekly Record
8/24/2026
NEW YORK — The criminal case against the daredevil couple who scaled the Empire State Building for a spectacular high-altitude engagement was adjourned Monday, with the pair remaining under court supervision while prosecutors continue to pursue the case.
Angela Nikolau and Ivan Kuznetsov appeared in Manhattan Criminal Court on Monday, Aug. 24, nearly eight weeks after their July 1 climb to the top of the Empire State Building’s broadcast antenna. Their appearance was also captured by Reuters photographer Jeenah Moon.
During the brief proceeding observed by the New York Weekly Record, prosecutors asked for the case to return during the week of Sept. 14. The judge did not grant that requested date, instead adjourning the matter to Sept. 29.
The couple will remain on supervised release in the meantime. No new protective order was issued during Monday’s appearance, and no indictment was announced in court.
If the proceeding itself was routine, the defendants were anything but.
Nikolau and Kuznetsov entered and left court holding hands, looking less like criminal defendants than rock stars making an appearance. Both wore leather jackets. Nikolau sported a striking slicked-up, upturned hairstyle that made the internationally known rooftopper instantly stand out in the courthouse.
The pair remained close throughout their appearance. As Nikolau was leaving the courtroom, she stopped to embrace and kiss a woman seated in the audience before departing with Kuznetsov.
It was an image remarkably consistent with the public persona that brought the couple to court in the first place: two internationally known daredevils, dressed in black and seemingly inseparable, now navigating the considerably less glamorous heights of Manhattan Criminal Court.
A Viral Climb, Proposal and Arrest
Nikolau, 33, and Kuznetsov, 32, became the center of an international media spectacle July 1 when they climbed the antenna atop the Empire State Building.
The Russian-born climbers, known professionally as Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus, unfurled a banner declaring, “When the power of love beats the love of power the world knows peace.” Kuznetsov then appeared to propose to Nikolau high above Manhattan before the two began making their way down.
Their celebration ended in police custody.
The NYPD arrested the pair after they descended, and prosecutors charged them with multiple offenses, including reckless endangerment, burglary and criminal mischief.
Authorities allege the couple entered the Empire State Building the night before the climb and remained inside overnight. Investigators said surveillance footage captured them going through a hatch on the 102nd floor at approximately 5 a.m.
According to the criminal complaint, a lock on a security door on the restricted 104th floor that provides access toward the broadcast antenna had been broken.
The antenna presented another problem for responding officers: it emits powerful high-frequency radio signals. Authorities said the antenna had to be powered down before members of the NYPD Emergency Service Unit could safely approach the climbers, delaying the response by approximately 30 minutes.
Kuznetsov allegedly told detectives he needed to “do something special for his engagement,” according to the criminal complaint.
Defense Says Case Was Overcharged
The couple’s attorney, Jason Krinsky, pushed back against the prosecution’s characterization of the incident following their July arraignment, arguing that the case had been overcharged.
Krinsky pointed to the Empire State Building’s own statement that tenants, visitors and observation-deck guests had not been endangered by the stunt. Prosecutors and police, however, have focused on the risks allegedly created for the officers who had to respond.
The pair were released under supervision following their initial court appearance and ordered to return Aug. 24. Contemporary reports from that arraignment already captured something that remained conspicuous Monday: the couple’s affection for each other. They held hands leaving their first appearance and shared a lengthy kiss before entering the subway.
That supervised release will now continue through their next court date.
The ‘Skywalkers’
This was hardly Nikolau and Kuznetsov’s first trip into the clouds.
The pair were featured in the 2024 Netflix documentary Skywalkers: A Love Story, which followed their relationship and extraordinary “rooftopping” exploits around the world. Their climbs include Malaysia’s Merdeka 118, one of the tallest buildings on Earth.
Their Empire State Building ascent added perhaps New York’s most recognizable skyscraper to that history — while also adding a Manhattan criminal prosecution.
After their first court appearance in July, Kuznetsov offered reporters a succinct explanation of the philosophy seemingly underlying both their stunt and their relationship:
“We believe in love.”
Nearly two months later, they arrived back in court hand in hand.
For now, their next destination isn’t another skyscraper.
It’s back to court.
Nikolau and Kuznetsov are scheduled to return to Manhattan Criminal Court on Sept. 29.
Leave a Reply