Man in custody after swinging sword on Empire State Building observation deck

ByEyewitness News WABC logo
Saturday, September 14, 2019
Man in custody after swinging sword on Empire State Building observation deck
Naveen Dhaliwal has the latest from Midtown.

MIDTOWN, Manhattan (WABC) -- A 35-year-old man was able to get to the observation deck at Empire State Building on Friday afternoon and began swinging what appeared to be a sword.

Matthew Dixon of Virginia was quickly placed in custody.

No one inside the Empire State Building was injured.

Police say the sword may have been concealed within a cane, but it is still unclear how Dixon got past metal detectors.

Dixon was taken to Bellevue Hospital for observation. He was charged with criminal possession of a weapon.

A building spokesperson released a statement saying.

"Earlier today there was an incident which was resolved without any interruption of Observatory operations or impact to any guests."

----------

* More Manhattan news

* Send us a news tip

* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts

* Follow us on YouTube