In a surprising turn of events, a South Philadelphia resident, who had set up a trail camera to observe raccoons, unexpectedly captured footage of a man wandering across their rooftop deck in the early hours of Saturday morning. This unsettling discovery has sparked concern among local residents.
The homeowner, who chose to remain anonymous, said, “I occasionally check the footage, and when I did, I found that around 2 a.m. on Saturday, someone was on my roof deck.” The unexpected visitor’s presence has raised alarms in the neighborhood.
Bill Fitch, another local resident, reported a similar encounter that night. “I saw the man, and at first, I thought it was just someone on a roof at night,” Fitch explained. “I didn’t think much of it initially. However, when I went upstairs, I clearly saw him wearing a ski mask and using a flashlight, seemingly trying to gain entry by inspecting windows.”
Fitch promptly alerted authorities by calling 911, but the man had already fled the scene by the time police officers arrived shortly thereafter.
Residents have requested that the specific street remain unnamed to avoid attracting further unwanted attention. They suspect the intruder gained access to the rooftops via a broken gate in an alleyway adjacent to what appears to be an abandoned property.
Neighbors asked that the street not be identified publicly, saying they do not want to draw more unwanted attention. They believe the man accessed the roofs through a broken alleyway gate next to what they think is an abandoned house.
Fitch said the incident has left him uneasy.
“I feel like he’s gonna come back. I feel paranoid, really. We’re locking the doors. We’re double-checking things. We’re putting bikes in front of doors and things so that if someone were to get in, they’d have to knock stuff over.”
Philadelphia police said criminal trespassing can apply even when a person does not enter a home’s interior. Anyone on a private residence without authorization, including on a roof, may face charges.
The resident who captured the footage said the experience was disturbing.
“It was very violating. Definitely don’t recognize the guy, don’t know what he was doing up there. He was poking around; it looked like he might have been checking the window or something,” they said. “So we have a no trespassing sign on our roof now, crazy as that sounds.”
Installing gates in city alleyways is illegal, but it remains a common practice. Residents often pool money to put up a gate and share keys; the responsibility ultimately falls on property owners.
Philadelphia police are looking into this incident.
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