The video, posted by “yessir_crew” on TikTok Saturday, showed two men walking inside the building with no protective gear. Part two was released Tuesday, showing the pair accessing abandoned tunnels connected to the ballroom while teasing a currently unreleased part three.

The original video received 25,000 views before being taken down on Wednesday. A YouTube channel connected to the TikTok account called “YessirMinnesota” identifies Ethan and Colin Clerc as running the account.

Police Chief Dave Borchert said he saw the video online over the weekend, and the incident was reported on Monday by Brown County Auditor-Treasurer Kelly Hotovec. Brown County is currently the owner of George’s Ballroom.

Borchert said this is not the first time trespassing has occurred in George’s Ballroom.

Sections of George’s Ballroom remain un-boarded, though most of it has been boarded up. Windschitl said either the boards have been ripped off since being placed, or these sections of the building dont go anywhere and were not touched for safety reasons.

“It’s happened before,” he said. “We’re trying to correct it by making sure that we have the doors secured and gates locked. We’re trying to take every reasonable prevention to make sure this isn’t happening.”

Borchert said trespassing has also happened in other abandoned New Ulm buildings, such as Marktplatz Mall. Since the mall has been shut down, he said there have been three cases involving trespassing there. He said that’s only the cases that have been reported.

“I think it happens more frequently than that,” Borchert said. “We don’t necessarily get called every time. They’re not aware of it right away. We respond a lot of times but it’s after the fact. Sometimes [people] don’t report it in a timely manner.”

Trespassing is a misdemeanor under state law. Borchert said NUPD’s first line of defense against trespassing is preventing it before it happens.

“We’re trying to prevent people from going into those areas,” he said. “If we notice it when it’s going on, we certainly try to talk with the individual and educate them to not go into the building. We try prevention as our primary tool. If we catch them in there, we’ll deal with it as a matter of law.”

The NUPD is currently investigating the matter. Borchert said they have some suspects in mind, and he believes they will be able to charge the individuals involved. He said his biggest concern is the safety factor, given the toxicity inside George’s.

“I don’t think you should be going in there without a self-contained breathing apparatus,” Borchert said. “The ceilings have fallen. My understanding is there’s asbestos in those ceilings. So that’s probably lying around there. You’ve got pigeon and other type of feces in there that’s not healthy to breathe, and there’s lead exposure.”

District 3 County Commissioner Scott Windschitl said the incident will not have any effect on the current development surrounding the property. Demolition funds from the city of $500,000 were approved at the Jan. 16 City Council Meeting. Windschitl said the next step is to approve a match in funds by the county.

After this, and further discussions with the developer, Windschitl said the demolition should be on the horizon.

“Could very well be in the near future,” he said. “They were talking sometime this year. That’s [not finalized yet], everything gets delayed. You think you got it all ready to go and somebody throws a wrench in it.”

Windschitl said the county has gone around and re-boarded the building to stop any future trespassers.