The climber made it to the 11th floor of the building in midtown Manhattan before descending to a lower floor and spending hours hanging out, making cell phone calls and talking to police before he was arrested about 5:30 a.m., police said.
At one point, the climber unfurled a banner on the "T" of the Times' sign that referenced Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, the Times reported on its Web site Wednesday.
Dozens of police and firefighters responded about 1:30 a.m. after the man was first spotted climbing the building, police said. Streets were closed off and an inflatable cushion was placed in front of the main entrance of the building.
The Daily News reported on its Web site Wednesday that it had received a call from a man identifying himself as the climber who said he was a 29-year-old college dropout from Connecticut. Police did not immediately confirm those reports.
A spokeswoman for the Times, Catherine Mathis, says modifications were made to the building and additional security was added after two climbers managed to scale the building June 5.
She said the company was investigating how the most recent climber was able to overcome the additional obstacles.
