A Department of Environmental Protection employee in training and two friends led police on a long search in the sewers underneath New York City streets before all three were caught and arrested, authorities say.
Police said the DEP trainee, 21-year-old Marquis Evans, popped open a manhole cover in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn, then allowed the other two to go down underneath East 35th Street near Avenue H Wednesday evening.
A witness spotted the men as they made their climb below and called police.
First responders didn't go underground right away, concerned about toxic gas. But once they deemed it safe, they began looking for the men in the sewers and after about four hours, found the men and took them into custody.
It's not clear what they were looking to do underground but police don't believe it was related to terrorism. Authorities believe they may have been looking for jewelry and valuables.
"God knows what they were looking for. I know for damn sure I wouldn't be crawling through the sewers of New York, but these three were evidently looking for something," NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton said Thursday.
Evans was charged with reckless endangerment, criminal facilitation and marijuana possession. The other two were charged with trespassing.
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The DEP said it has suspended Evans from his job.
"Entering a sewer without proper authorization and training is illegal, incredibly irresponsible and dangerous," the DEP said in a statement. "Illegally accessing any confined space with potentially hazardous materials or conditions risks the safety of the trespassers as well as the first responders."
Bratton said that with 5,000 manholes across the city, it's impossible to weld them all shut.
"Any idiot who wants to crawl below the streets unfortunately can do it by prying. But what happened here last night is what we ask people to do -- if you see something, say something," he said.
Evans was in court Thursday night and set to appear before a judge.
