Man falls from downtown GR building

People, please be smart and safe. No picture is worth your life.

From w00dtv.com

GRAND RAPIDS - Grand Rapids police are investigating the death of a man who fell from a 12 story downtown building Monday morning.

So far, they know three men were making their way down the fire escape of an office building at 77 Monroe Center, and one of them fell onto the roof of the Louis Benton Steakhouse just after 4 a.m.

Firefighters used a fire truck ladder to reach the rooftop to retrieve the body a few hours later.

A source close to the investigation says the 21-year-old who died and his two friends were climbing the escape to take pictures of Grand Rapids.

One of the men is enrolled in a photography class at Grand Rapids Community College.

After taking the photos, the men were on their way down when they noticed someone inside the office building had spotted them through the window.

They did not want that person to see them, so they climbed down the outside of the fire escape and one of them fell to his death.

24 Hour News 8’s Dee Morrison spoke with an employee of radio station B-93, John the Canuck, who says he heard a loud boom shortly after 4 a.m. and thought a car had slammed into the building.

When he looked out the window, he saw the victim and notified authorities.

He also saw another person running down the fire escape.

The three men have no prior record with police.