Detroit/ Crime & Emergencies
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Published on May 09, 2024
Midland's "Rooftop Ninja", Woman Evicted from Makeshift Home in Grocery Store SignSource: Google Street View

A Michigan woman has been evicted from her unconventional abode inside a grocery store sign after living there for approximately a year, WWJ Newsradio 950 reports. The 34-year-old was discovered by contractors working on the Family Fare store in Midland when they followed an extension cord to her hidden dwelling in the store's rooftop signage.

The unusual residence included a mini desk, flooring, a food pantry, and even a house plant, investigators found. Public Relations Officer Brennon Warren of the Midland Police Department expressed his bewilderment by stating, "I've never seen anything like this before in my career." Officers have since encouraged the woman to permanently vacate the location and offered her housing assistance, which she declined, OurMidland reports.

Despite her unconventional housing choice, the woman is gainfully employed and presumably has a vehicle, though police are unclear on how she managed to inhabit the rooftop. "They were like ‘OMG, someone is living in that sign,’" Officer Warren recounted in a statement obtained by OurMidland, capturing the surprise of those who made the discovery.

This bizarre instance of makeshift lodging has prompted no criminal charges against the "Rooftop Ninja," as she was nicknamed by law enforcement. Police cooperatively worked with the woman to move her belongings down from the sign. "We provided her with some information about services in the area," Officer Warren divulged in an interview with WTOP.

SpartanNash, the parent company of Family Fare, stated that their employees handled the situation with "the utmost compassion and professionalism" and acknowledged the need for community partnerships to address housing affordability, according to OurMidland. The story concludes with the grocery store and law enforcement declining to comment further on the matter out of respect for the individual's privacy. The whereabouts of the woman following her displacement from the sign remain unknown.