VIDEO: Massachusetts Man Climbs Several Stories Up New York Times Building

NEW YORK (CBS/AP) — A man took to the side of The New York Times headquarters on Thursday, climbing several stories before police got him inside and into custody. Police identified him as 36-year-old Wilmer Ferrara, of Lawrence, Massachusetts.

The New York Police Department said it happened shortly after 5 p.m., when the man started scaling the south side of the building, which is in midtown Manhattan near Times Square, across the street from the Port Authority bus terminal.

The NYPD said officers apprehended the man from inside on the sixth floor after he told them he got tired.

Video showed man waiting as officers cut or broke part of a window, then pulled him in.

Eighth Avenue was shut down and onlookers swarmed the sidewalk in suspense.

"At first I wondered if he had a banner," one witness told CBS New York. "I was very concerned."

The 52-story building has been the target of climbers before. In 2011, a man climbed up five stories before coming back down. Three men made the attempt in 2008, two making it to the roof and one to the 11th floor.

(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)