MANHATTAN (WABC) — A 15-year-old has been charged in connection with a stunt on the Queensboro Bridge earlier this week that led to another teenager being rescued.
Officials said a 15-year-old has been charged with criminal trespass in connection with the incident.
On Monday, an apparent stunt drew a massive rescue response on the Queensboro Bridge after a 16-year-old fell into a confined space inside the bridge span.
The incident may have started because of a social media trend.
The 16-year-old was with friends when the incident happened, but they weren’t the ones who alerted the authorities for help.
After videos of the teenager who had fallen about 50 feet down a 3-foot by 3-foot shaft after climbing a section of the bridge over Roosevelt Island circulated in a WhatsApp, a young woman alerted 911.
“I texted them anonymously. I didn’t know really what to do either because I wasn’t there. But I, you know, these kids are panicking. And I was like, if there’s someone in critical danger, I need to help,” the girl told Eyewitness News.
She said the teenager was climbing the bridge with a small group of friends who apparently left the teenager alone after he fell down the shaft.
The 16-year-old boy’s mother from Long Island said the boy had brain injuries and it will take him time to recover. He remains in the hospital.
“It’s very sad how they left my baby for dead and took his phone and tossed it either in the river or a sewer. He had minutes to live. They left him there for hours. Alone. Terrified. We found him, though. I will get justice for my son,” the mother said.
Officials said Friday that a second teen, a 14-year-old, is charged with reckless endangerment and criminal trespassing after leaving the 16-year-old trapped.
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