Shock moment cops find woman living inside supermarket sign that she’d turned into an apartment with ‘kitchen & office’
THIS is the shocking moment police discover a woman living inside a supermarket sign on the roof of a grocery store.
The 34-year-old had made the tiny space into a cosy home – kitting it out with a kitchen, an office and even a coffee maker.
Video footage shows the moment the resident is rumbled as cops open the door and tell her “you’re coming out right now.”
The woman had been living behind the triangle-shaped sign – approximately 5ft wide and 8ft high – for a year, she told officers when she was found on April 23.
Her hidey hole was discovered by contractors hired to work on the Family Fare store in Midland, 130 miles north of Detroit.
She appeared to have worked hard to transform the cramped space into a comfortable abode.
One of the workers saw an extension cord on the roof and stumbled upon the woman in her make-shift home where she had space for a printer, a coffee machine, and a computer, police said.
She had also reportedly laid down flooring and bedding and had houseplants too.
Officer Brennon Warren from the Midland Police Department said the woman was “homeless” and added: “It’s a story that makes you scratch your head, just somebody living up in a sign.”
He explained that the woman’s makeshift home was accessed via a door from the roof.
When the woman emerged she was donning an all black puma tracksuit with a ski mask, gloves, and ski googles.
She told cops she chose to wear this as she was allergic to the sun, they said.
Footage obtained by MLive captured the moment the squatter was escorted away.
Law enforcement was able to convince the woman to open the small metal door to the sign.
They tell her: “you’re coming out right now, you have no time you’re coming with us.”
Officers said were impressed by the squatter’s “apartment” she fashioned herself, calling it “pretty genius.”
They assured the woman that they would collect all her possessions and deliver them to her.
She said that she was trying to get away from people, and requested they didn’t contact her family.
“At this point, you’re not in any trouble whatsoever,” the cop replies. “You’re an adult. I don’t need to tell anybody your business.”
The women, who described herself as homeless, did not reveal how she gets onto the roof but she did refer to it as “an old safe spot.”
It’s a story that makes you scratch your head, just somebody living up in a sign
Officer Brennon Warren
Despite getting being forced to leave her shelter, she still sweetly offered the officers non-alcohol ginger root beverages, to which they politely declined with a chuckle.
They also complimented her clean space, joking that she ate healthier than they did.
The woman was not issued a fine as she left without making a fuss.
After the story went viral, Family Fare donated $10,000 to Midland’s Open Door, a homeless shelter in Midland.
It comes as security guards at a shopping mall were stunned when they discovered a man had allegedly been living under the staircase for six months.
The resourceful youngster had made himself quite at home fitting out his cabin with a tent, a table, a computer and even an ergonomic chair.
Some viewers called the man a “parasite” and said he could be dangerous, however others praised his savvy rent-avoiding tactics.
