WTC parachute jump condemned as selfish act

NEW YORK (AP) — The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the New York police commissioner denounced the parachute jump off 1 World Trade Center last fall by three skydiving enthusiasts as a lawless act that put others in danger.

"The Port Authority joins the NYPD in condemning this lawless and selfish act that clearly endangered the public," the agency said in a statement early today. "One of the jumpers worked construction at the WTC and violated the spirit of respect and reverence for this sacred site that almost all connected with the WTC project feel."

Four men — three daredevils and someone accused of being an accomplice — were arrested Monday in connection with the Sept. 30 "base jumping" from the nation's tallest building. They were arraigned on charges including felony burglary.

"These arrests should send a message to anyone thinking about misusing a landmark this way," Police Commissioner William Bratton said. "Being a thrill-seeker does not give immunity from the law."

The arrests came days after a New Jersey teenager was accused of unlawfully entering the site, eluding an inattentive security guard and spending about two hours atop the 1,776-foot-tall tower. The skyscraper, still under construction, crowns the rebuilt World Trade Center, a project steeped in security concerns.