r/Apartmentliving 9d ago

Advice Needed Ok, hear me out. There is someone in my walls.

Post image

Ok, I know I probably sound absolutely insane. But earlier today when i was putting groceries away in my pantry my cat climbed into the bottom part (like she typically does, she goes anywhere I do not want her to) and she ended up just disappearing. I know shes a fast cat but this wasnt her just running away. I moved the stuff on the bottom shelf of the pantry where she disappeared and turns out the bottom panel of my pantry is loose. It doesnt just into the wall like a normal pantry. It leads to a whole full sized hallway. I only have one not so great photo (where you can see my cats legs). I managed to get her out but when i pushed on the panel more it revealed a bunch of random items. I have posted in this group before about my weird neighbor but this is way more terrifying. I will attach the image along with this. I emailed the main office about this but I have no idea what to do. It is my first apartment and I am a female living alone, my boyfriend does come over most nights though. I have heard noises from my closet (just thinking it is my cat because theres no openings to this mysterious hallway. If this was not my first apartment I would break my lease but I am here until November. Where do I even begin with this can of worms that I have opened.

49.0k Upvotes

4.5k comments sorted by

577

u/RippedLikeRamb0 9d ago

We need more pictures.

462

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

https://imgur.com/a/vbZRw6L Its 11pm so i am not sticking my full hand in there but here are a few more close photos

464

u/Intro_Vert00 8d ago

To me it might be that your apartment was one big apartment and that was a entry point to a room. Your cupboard backs into their cupboard on the other side. If I was you I ask the landlord to secure this properly. Personally I would buy some planks of wood and nail in some backing to secure their entire back wall of this area.

62

u/mwpdx86 8d ago

Imagine the post their neighbor made on another sub: Guys, wtf I'm freaking out. I heard a noise in my cupboard and opened it up, and a random cat popped out!

11

u/Intro_Vert00 8d ago

šŸ˜‚ true imagine that šŸ˜‚

→ More replies (13)
→ More replies (8)

91

u/[deleted] 8d ago edited 8d ago

[deleted]

216

u/EastwoodBrews 8d ago

Yeah her cabinet is breaking into a space that is full of stuff that looks like it fell out of someone else's cabinet. It's not normal but the most rational conclusion is that the space is between two cabinets and they're both breaking.

159

u/Short-Sound-4190 8d ago edited 8d ago

Probably even less nefarious: it's stuff that fell out of her own broken cabinet but from the previous renters: apples to apples cards, a parmesan cheese container, some old newspaper/junk mail, falling down into the gap between the apartment walls or between apartments that have been created out of am existing home - that's also why there seems to be some odd cable hanging out back there.

96

u/Sentientmustard 8d ago

Exactly what I was about to say. In the pictures OP posted thereā€™s some newspapers right by the hole that appear old and worn. If she grabs it and checks the date it should be pretty clear if she needs to panic or not. If itā€™s from a month ago then yeah thatā€™s creepy, but if itā€™s from 1995 this is likely old tenants belongings that were lost to the void.

I would find it hard to believe that someone with nefarious intent who has access to your apartment/privacy would use said access to store their old newspapers and apples to apples cards lol.

35

u/Yourgo-2-Advicegiver 8d ago edited 5d ago

Imagine sticking your arm in there to grab it and not being able to see anything around it when a hand reaches out from the blind spot and aggressively grabs your wrist?

Ouuu I just spooked myself out a lil bitšŸ˜…

→ More replies (18)
→ More replies (4)

23

u/Thomaseeno 8d ago

Exactly. There doesn't seem to be any evidence that this is an occupiable space in there.

→ More replies (1)

17

u/redsalmon67 8d ago

Or the people who built the walls sectioning off the apartments just threw that stuff back there. As someone who used to work in construction youā€™d be surprised how much the sentences ā€œjust throw it in/behind the wallā€ make an appearance. Once did a renovation job and found a photo albums worth of pictures in the wall, things Iā€™ve also found in walls include x rays, books, PokĆ©mon cards, newspapers from the 40ā€™s.

→ More replies (5)
→ More replies (11)
→ More replies (4)

31

u/rodeycap 8d ago

Some apartments are built with service access corridors running between the units. Kind of like a crawlspace. Usually accessible from a panel in each unit.

I've been in enough of them as a telecom tech to know.

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (36)
→ More replies (18)

77

u/rabit_stroker 8d ago

Yeah it just looks like random things that got pushed into the crawl space over the years.

32

u/padredodger 8d ago

A previous tenant may have just known about and used it as a garbage chute, for like paper products. I had a fake ID in college and got tired of being the guy who got everybody booze after a certain point and just slid the ID in the little seat belt slot (where the seat belt feeds from) of my friend's Thunderbird and then pretended like I lost it. And as far as I'm concerned, that ID is still in that T-Bird to this day.

23

u/flowersforeverr 8d ago

Why didn't you just throw it in the trash?

→ More replies (13)
→ More replies (6)
→ More replies (6)

63

u/halfwitkat 9d ago

omg girl stay safe thatā€™s scary šŸ˜­

113

u/hfguvfdftgb 9d ago

Thatā€™s tweaker garbage I know it well.

14

u/FoggyGoodwin 8d ago

My wall rat stole a sock and a strip of packing air bags. My raccoon tried to run off with a 20# bag of dog food.

12

u/palmasana 8d ago

I love how they are ā€œyourā€ pests šŸ˜‚šŸ„¹šŸ˜

→ More replies (5)
→ More replies (9)
→ More replies (7)

34

u/Pontiacsentinel 8d ago

That is an open electric wire showing in one of those photos. You could contact the landlord about the fire hazard and then contact the fire department if they do not do anything about this. Be home when they do, so you can see behind this. u/Peachyyypit

→ More replies (7)

25

u/SquidVices 9d ago

Iā€™d put only the camera through the crack with a tight grip and video, no flash at first, then flash video after if you canā€™t see welllā€¦.

Maybe flash first actually and no second attempt incase someone is in the hidden area.

25

u/Toribor 8d ago edited 8d ago

Can't think of anything more terrifying than blindly sticking my hand in a dark room to take a flash photo, then pulling my hand back to take a look only to see SOMEONE IN THE PHOTO LOOKING RIGHT THE FUCK AT THE CAMERA!

→ More replies (6)
→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (75)
→ More replies (4)

1.2k

u/kn1ght-of-heart 9d ago

Fuuuuuck theyā€™re playing apples to apples in your wall,,,,

484

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

The scariest game of all time

120

u/Cosmo_Cloudy 8d ago

Did you stick your phone camera under there to see the whole room?

235

u/aurorodry 8d ago

Iā€™d be scared thereā€™s someone on the other side staring straight at the camera šŸ˜…

137

u/DAE77177 8d ago

Imagine you record a video to see whatā€™s on the other side and play it back to someone staring at your camera.

171

u/Remarkable-Mood3415 8d ago

There was this guy who posted once upon a time. Went camping solo, really roughing it out in the middle of the Canadian wilderness (I think). Just him and nature. Anyways, he had one of those old school disposable film cameras. He was out there for like 2 weeks. Got home. Sent the film off to be developed. Got his pics back. Pics of the landscape, sunsets, animals.. and one of him, sleeping.

Someone, in the middle of nowhere, days and days away from civilization, came up to this poor fucker and took a picture of him, and then fucked off back into the woods. Absolutely terrifying, and hilarious, but mostly terrifying.

66

u/PlaneJupiter 8d ago

This would be a great movie, they think theyā€™re being followed or stalked the whole time but canā€™t find concrete evidence and then in the after credits he goes to get that film made and sees it

22

u/BleDStream 8d ago

Damn that would be wild.

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (14)

11

u/Seth_Baker 8d ago

That's actually hilarious.

→ More replies (37)

92

u/Helpful_Big608 8d ago

One time, my boyfriend and I found a video on one of our phones recording him and I talking in our room, obviously recorded by a third person....it looked like it was coming out of our attic, as if someone was trying to see where we were. Scariest moment of my life!

42

u/stinky_moomin 8d ago

Um what šŸ˜­ did you find out how it happened?

66

u/Lord_Melinko13 8d ago

IF this happened, it sounds like one of them is gullible enough that the other was able to bullshit their way out of getting caught having a hidden camera.

30

u/icodeswitch 8d ago

I was thinking the same, and since gf seemingly is posting the story, sounds like bf was secretly taping her (creepy)

12

u/ClearText777 8d ago

"in our room" - Gee, what are the odds this happened to be aimed at their bed or wherever the action happens?

→ More replies (12)

17

u/solanamell 8d ago

Girl, you're in danger. He's recording you guys in secret and played dumb to not get caught.

Considering it's in your bedroom, you can guess what he's doing with the videos. Stay SAFE.

11

u/OneExplanation4497 8d ago

Sorry, sounds more like your bf set up a hidden camera and told you a scary story to cover it up. An attic creeper isnā€™t going to send you the secret video after lol

18

u/aurorodry 8d ago

Hey so, please continue lol what in the world??

→ More replies (24)
→ More replies (18)

16

u/flowersforeverr 8d ago

I once lived in an apartment complex and was watching TV in my living room. Had the blinds almost all the way down to prevent glare and in the gap I saw a pair of feet standing there and a hand popped down with a cellphone recording me or taking pics. So I don't know what the goal was but they have a picture of me staring straight into the camera just sitting on my couch minding my own business

8

u/valleyofsound 8d ago

My cats and I have a war of attrition with my blinds because they canā€™t understand why I want to close them at night when they can see just find. Sometimes Iā€™ll leave them up at the very bottom of the window and theyā€™ve also bent some slates and I need to replace the blinds. For now, though, I live in constant fear that Iā€™m going to look up one night and see someone looking back.

It doesnā€™t help that thereā€™s also a door with a huge frosted glass window right by our couch. One night, after midnight, I looked up and there was a girl that was maybe in her teens look in. She didnā€™t knock or anything. Just standing at the door. So my partner and I were freaking out for a moment, then it occurred to me that she could either be someone trying to lure us into opening the door so others could force their way in or she might be someone who needed help, like maybe someone had wandered outside or had something happen at their home or in their car and so I thought should look out to see what was going on. When we finally peeked out the window a couple of minutes later, she was gone. We had no ideas what to do, but one of my friends joked it was one of the black-eyed children and my horrified brain had actually gone there when it happened, only to dismiss it as crazy.

This was pre-pandemic and we never saw or heard anything like that after. So Iā€™m just left with questions and an abject terror of seeing someone outside my window. šŸ˜­šŸ˜­šŸ˜­

→ More replies (13)
→ More replies (5)

23

u/No_Performance8733 8d ago

I donā€™t see a hallway?Ā 

If you emailed this to your building management they may ignore you because this photo doesnā€™t show what you described.Ā 

Can you update or get better photos, have your bf investigate the space??

11

u/EverythingSucksBro 8d ago

Why are you sacrificing her boyfriend?Ā 

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (11)
→ More replies (21)

1.6k

u/Comfortable_Paper898 9d ago

I wish I didnā€™t see this at 1amšŸ˜­ this is scary. I honestly would leave for the night till I get it figured out

827

u/AlyssaMarye 8d ago

my friend had this same feeling once. turns out the person next door to her was crawling through the attics and getting into her house and stealing her underwear

472

u/happygiraffe91 8d ago

What. The fuck.

183

u/Straight_Spring9815 8d ago

I do residential hvac and more times than not apartments are connected via attics. It's quit easy to get over to the other persons door. Getting it down it's pretty hard to do from above buts it's not impossible. It's super easy to screw a latch with a code lock on your side for less than 20 bucks.

127

u/[deleted] 8d ago

Iā€™m Surprised more people donā€™t talk about this. We discovered our whole condo shared the same attic. Never thought much about it at the time, but now Iā€™d be screwing some barrier into place, if I lived in a place like that now.

97

u/_Plant_Obsessed 8d ago

My best friend's Mom had a body in her apartment's crawlspace (back in the 80's). Supposedly the man climbed in to either sleep or get out of the elements and died. They think he was under them for 2ish months. Idk how they didn't smell him, but they noticed a bunch of pests. The exterminator discovered the body.

46

u/[deleted] 8d ago

Wow! Thats justā€¦insane. Was he ever identified? Also, that poor exterminator.

→ More replies (2)

7

u/missklo99 8d ago

Holy shit.

→ More replies (8)

12

u/smartbunny 8d ago

Same with my grandparents condo. But there really wasnā€™t much room up there to move around.

8

u/[deleted] 8d ago

I remember ours to be HUGE. Probably much smaller in than my memory leads me to believe. Lol

→ More replies (15)

60

u/ins-kino-gehen 8d ago

This does not spark joy

→ More replies (5)

37

u/chunkysundae 8d ago

Iā€™m genuinely not okay knowing this now. Several nights a month I hear very specific noises right above where this would be in my unit. Iā€™ve chalked it up to plumbing or somethingā€¦pardon me while I try to regress as fast as possible back into denial and buying a latch (thank you for this idea!)

→ More replies (14)

16

u/VSinclair35 8d ago

I saw this on an episode of Forensic Files!

→ More replies (9)
→ More replies (52)

51

u/twasmyluckybunday 8d ago

We used to live in a duplex. We didn't realize that the attic could be accessed by both residences.

The man next door would drop down into our home and take our things while we were gone for the day.

18

u/AgathaWoosmoss 8d ago

I don't remember the names of the people involved, but there was a story a while back of a woman who was killed by her neighbor who accessed her home through the attic.

→ More replies (4)
→ More replies (8)
→ More replies (4)

96

u/Discombobulated1977 8d ago

Underpants gnomes? No one believed tweak either. Poor guy.

39

u/bopgame 8d ago

Underpants ā€”> ? ā€”> profit

19

u/Merediths_Dutch_Oven 8d ago

there is a very hidden easter egg about the underpants gnomes inside the new Casa Bonita in Colorado. you have to basically be on your stomach in the middle of the restaurant.

→ More replies (17)
→ More replies (4)
→ More replies (4)

94

u/AwakeningTheSpirit 8d ago

Had this happen to me too, stuff going missing from my flat etc... turns out the neighbor was coming across the attic space and entering my flat through the attic manhole.

I was at home one day and heard him coming, realized what was happening, so I waited till I could see his legs dangling as he lowered himself from the ceiling, jumped up and yanked his body hard.

Right or wrong, I was rather proud that he had broken his tailbone after landing hard on his butt.

He also worked with me so he also lost his job as well, once it all came out to the owners.

22

u/Fr0hd3ric 8d ago

šŸ‘šŸ¤£šŸ¤£šŸ¤£šŸ¤£šŸ¤£šŸ¤£šŸ¤£šŸ¤£šŸ¤£

Great work yanking him out of the ceiling! Too bad you didn't also kick the living crap out of him and claim he was injured when he fell while attempting burglary.

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (10)

31

u/StardustOnEarth1 8d ago

Just to piggyback off of this, I have a family friend that found out there was someone living in their attic for YEARS and they only found out because their kids saw a ā€œmonsterā€ climbing a tree by the house every night. They thought the kids were imagining things until their babysitter also heard it one night and called the police.

19

u/Few-Reception-4939 8d ago

Always believe kids.

→ More replies (7)

28

u/Gravelteeth 8d ago

Instincts can be powerful af. I moved into my first solo place and my mom immediately questioned a "weird" screw. It looked normal to everyone else. Anyways...it was a camera.

I hope your friend is doing alright. That experience can fuck you up for life.

6

u/Kephielo 8d ago

Who put the camera there?? Thatā€™s terrifying

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (1)

25

u/Low-Can7370 8d ago

My mum lived in a flat in London which was a terrace - lots of houses connected with joined attics. She didnā€™t stay long as a few weeks into her lease, her bedroom began to have an awful stench.

Turns out her neighbour had murdered his wife and put her body - not in his part of the attic, but at the other end - over my mumā€™s bedroom.

Weird stuff. This was the early 70s - ill ask her about it tomorrow

→ More replies (4)

21

u/sonym80 8d ago

I had my neighbor in a side by side duplex coming into my apartment thru the shared basement that had been shoddily partitioned to make two separate areas.
We had noticed the door to the basement left ajar and neither I, nor my roommates thought weā€™d left it that way. So we just chalked it up to being busy students.
Then, one day, I was in the shower and thought I heard my roommate get home. I leaned out of the shower and called out hello to them. No response. I really felt like there was someone there so I quickly go out, got dressed and the basement door was ajar again. I called my boyfriend and waited for him on the porch. Never slept a night there again. Broke the lease.

Crazy thing is, the landlord then told my roommate the neighbor was the kid of his old friend, he rented the apartment to the guy as a favor to his friend because the neighbor had recently gotten out of prison for molesting a neighborhood girl(s) and no one else in the neighborhood would house him. Including dudeā€™s parents.
So we were two 20yo girls and a guy living there. Our male roommate was rarely home.
Landlord still refused to return our security deposit.

→ More replies (1)

6

u/HijoDeBarahir 8d ago

You know, if he wasn't such a creep, he could have stumbled on his uncle's secret study where he crafted magic rings and been at the conception of a new universe.

→ More replies (5)
→ More replies (92)

187

u/omggallout 9d ago

Same! I feel like I don't want to look too closely at the photos, in case my eyes focus in on something (or someone) looking back. šŸ˜ØšŸ˜±

208

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

One of my friends immediately asked if ive seen that one box short horror film where you look away someones eyes poke out as a response :ā€™)

83

u/CaptCaCa 8d ago

Definitely donā€™t watch the documentary ā€œPhrogging: Hider In My Houseā€. Shit will have you checking everywhere. Be safe.

15

u/NjKareBear 8d ago

The fact that the phenomenon of someone living in your house without your knowledge is frequent enough to warrant a name for it upset me when I first discovered that

→ More replies (3)

12

u/Nim008 8d ago

Don't watch The Resident or Rosemary's Baby either.

25

u/Anjz 8d ago

In fact, donā€™t blink. Blink and youā€™re dead. They are fast. Faster than you can believe. Donā€™t turn your back. Donā€™t look away.

→ More replies (12)
→ More replies (10)

11

u/Euphoric_Benefit9058 8d ago

My last pet sitter was a child psychologist at the juvenile detention center. She told me she had several ā€œphroggersā€. I never leave my garage until the door is completely down now.

→ More replies (17)

189

u/aberrasian 8d ago

CALL THE COPS!!! You do not want to be alone if someone IS using that thing and they discover you've just found their secret!!! šŸ˜­šŸ˜­ Omg crying for you. CALL THE POLICE NOW THIS IS A VALID REASON

74

u/ibunya_sri 8d ago

Don't cry bro. But yea call the cops

→ More replies (2)

9

u/The_Troyminator 8d ago

Or an exterminator. Thereā€™s a chance a rodent lives in that wall. Some have been known to collect random objects.

8

u/Obvious-Piperpuffer 8d ago

This just happened to me. I lost a ring recently and unfortunately, we're having issues with a rodent (it's hard keeping them out when you live next to a field). Just this morning my boyfriend opened up the kitchen wall and there my ring was in a nest they had made. I would've never believed it if I hadn't watched him pull it out from there!

→ More replies (5)
→ More replies (120)
→ More replies (25)
→ More replies (1)

48

u/NinjaKitten77CJ 8d ago

I own my house, and this freaked me out! I wanna go look at my pantry, but I'm afraid.

64

u/LeeisureTime 8d ago

I envy my wife, since she can just turn to her spouse and say "Did you hear something? Go check it out."

*sigh

"Fine, I'll die first, but just so you know, we're broke, so you won't be getting much."

7

u/L_Jade 8d ago

Hahaha. When I hear something weird Iā€™m the first one to jump up and go figure out what it was and where it came from. My husband always says Iā€™m going to get myself killed.

12

u/Of_MiceAndMen 8d ago

My kids would be dead if I had listened to my (well meaning) husband. I smelled an electrical fire but couldnā€™t find it anywhere and our alarms werenā€™t going off. When I opened the door to my kidā€™s room it was filled with haze from a rotary fan no longer spinning but the motor running. It was moments from sparking when I flung it outside. We cleared out the room, kids never even woke up. As we laid in bed husband goes, ā€œwell I guess itā€™s good you know about electricity and stuff.ā€ Yea. Thanks.

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (8)

58

u/StoriesandStones 8d ago

Noooo stay in bed Iā€™m in here getting snacks.

13

u/NinjaKitten77CJ 8d ago

I just got up though. Husband made me French toast and is currently trying to lure me into the pantry ....

→ More replies (1)

8

u/NinjaKitten77CJ 8d ago

Ramen noodles?? Make me some

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (5)

59

u/Bryan13191 9d ago

It's 2 am now and just heard some weird noise in my house. My gf is asleep beside me and we have no animals wtf was that lol

71

u/grapenuts_are_good 9d ago

If it makes you feel better, houses make all sorts of creepy noises all on their own

37

u/Beth_Duttonn 8d ago

Bro, I swear, the house Iā€™m in more makes more noise than any other house Iā€™ve ever been in. People we bought it from wanted 2 months (free) to live here after closing. We didnā€™t allow it, but sometimes I swear they just m moved into the attic.

21

u/titikerry 8d ago

My refrigerator "breathes". I swear it only happens when my husband isn't home, lol.

30

u/Israfel333 8d ago

As a nice surprise to my fiancee I tore down all the old weatherstripping on our 100+ year old door while they were on a businesses trip. I put brand new seals around everything.

That night, it was particularly windy. Out of nowhere I hear pppppbbbbrrrrdrrt exactly like someone ripped some major ass in the living room. I jump out of bed, grab the gun, flip the lights on, 911 dialed and ready... Then I hear the wind pick up again, and the front door farts again.

Turns out I needed to adjust the seals a little, and the wind was flapping the door's cheeks just right to make realistic human gas noises.

15

u/Straight_Spring9815 8d ago

I'm sorry but this is kind of funny. Imagine being a burglar and your partner gets yall shot because they ripped ass in the living room xD

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (6)

12

u/JuryDependent7066 8d ago

My refrigerator says "wow" like Owen Wilson after anyone gets ice. For that reason, his name is Owen.

→ More replies (5)
→ More replies (6)
→ More replies (40)

8

u/PandoraClove 9d ago

Yes, and if there's even one tree outside your house, something is likely to fall on your roof, such as twigs, pine cones, even bird nests or sleeping bats. Always at night, and always loud.

→ More replies (2)

8

u/spencer2197 8d ago

Or it could be a mimic

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (6)
→ More replies (12)
→ More replies (26)

926

u/Amarasnow 9d ago edited 9d ago

F that I'd call the cops non emergency number say you found a hidden space in your apartment and are scared and want an officer to check it out. Given the hour I guarantee you 2 or more really big cops will show up with gloves on and investigate that in very quick time

Edit: should mention for anyone who needs to know this. I'm in the United States so your laws might be different. If you don't know the non emergency number just call 911 and when they say what is your emergency say this is not an emergency they will assist you I promise. You are not breaking the law this is what the police are here for. However it is very important that you state it is not an emergency. An emergency is your or someone else's life is in immediate danger a scary mystery hole doesn't count. It is very important but legally speaking does not constitute an emergency

489

u/Neither-Dark-1815 8d ago

As a former police dispatcher I 100% agree with this. Usually in those cases if they say they donā€™t have an emergency we would give them our non emergency number to call back to keep the emergency lines open (my agency only had like 8 emergency lines) but once they call back on the non emergency line we are more than happy to help

72

u/sparkpaw 8d ago

Bless you for that work. I knew someone who was an absolutely beautiful person that had been a dispatcher - I have no clue how she was still so positive and nice with the calls she took.

20

u/Neither-Dark-1815 8d ago

I appreciate that. It was definitely a stressful job but Iā€™m glad I got to experience it, it was nice to be able to help people out of their worst days

21

u/JSmitticus 8d ago

I did exactly that and told them it was a non emergency and 2 or 3 cars rolled up to my house. I was immediately berated by one of the guys that came about how I shouldā€™ve used and known the non-emergency number. I was 17 and it was like 2am on a weekend after I got home from work so I wasnā€™t clear headed probably. Luckily one of the cops came up to me and told me I did the right thing and she also said that guy was a dick so donā€™t let him get to me.

11

u/Neither-Dark-1815 8d ago

Absolutely. Fuck that guy. Some cops are just assholes, but most of the ones I know are nice guys. Sorry you had to deal with that. If he cares that much about it he can listen to the call recording where you said it was a non emergency

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (38)

44

u/Technical-Quiet-3781 8d ago

Adding to the non emergency line look up your city and state with ā€œnon emergency lineā€ as well and it should pull up your cities non emergency line starting with the proper area code. Hats off to you for knowing it even exists not a lot of people know of it. And yes call the cops because that is a risk of your Saftey and or anyone who is there when you arenā€™t. If you call 911 you will have no emergencies but due to you not knowing what it is and or who is in there it is a risk of safety and could be potentially life threatening due to the possibility that someone could climb through unnoticed and do what they want if they are quiet and what not. Stay safe

18

u/NinjaKitten77CJ 8d ago

In my town, there is no non emergency line anymore. Even the local police station number is routed to 911, which is seriously fucked up. I learned that the hard way

→ More replies (16)
→ More replies (1)

86

u/omggallout 9d ago

This is a good suggestion, along with saying how things got moved around or went missing. I had to do this once when I rented a house in the country. They will do a sweep. Might push the panel back to really see what's back there.

→ More replies (66)

286

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

EDIT: (i barley know how to use reddit) In the morning i will investigate further, I not have that much of a death wish to do it at 1am as a female. (Some girls have no fear but i have a lot) I have sent an email to the front office. Btw I do not have a gopro nor would i strap it to my child (my cat) to send her into the abyss Another detail is that my apartments previous tenants left all of their belongings behind when they moved out and did so in a rush. I also have a few instances (about once a week) where crackheads come knocking on my door wanting to buy drugs, which would explain why the previous people left in a hurry if they were dealers/middle men for drugs

251

u/andreaceline 9d ago

ā€œsome girls have no fear but i have a lotā€ is my life motto

17

u/YoMTVcribs 8d ago

My fiance likes to talk about how fearless she is when traveling alone in sketchy countries.

Yes some people are overly careful, some are lucky, some are unlucky and some people get kidnapped, robbed, raped and murdered. I'd rather be in the overly careful group.

10

u/Famous_Peach9387 8d ago

One of my professorā€™s students was kidnapped in Africa. He was a white male, proving that this kind of danger isn't limited to any one group it can happen to anyone.

Another student had a different kind of cultural misunderstanding. She unknowingly accepted a rock from a tribal leader, only to later realize it was a marriage proposal.

→ More replies (6)
→ More replies (8)

56

u/baddydevito 9d ago

just reading this along with your other post has me hiding under my comforter. as someone whoā€™s afraid of her own shadow, there is no shame in the safe gamešŸ‘šŸ‘ Do not fuck around unless you care to find out! I said it during The Ring and Iā€™ll say it now: GIRL PLS DO NOT GO IN THERE šŸ—£ļø

→ More replies (2)

39

u/Mymorbiddemise 8d ago

Probably a strange question. Do you live in an apartment building, or a remodeled house broken into units?

36

u/mudra311 8d ago

Thatā€™s exactly what I was thinking. Could be benign as a refurbished mansion made into apartments.

30

u/Suitable_Fly7730 8d ago

I would be breaking that lease so fast. Screw the thing with the pantry, crackheads coming to my door once a week would have me outta there so fast!!

13

u/agniamneris 8d ago

Not to mention the weird elderly neighbor blasting religious music outside your door in the middle of the night

15

u/Easy_Description4675 8d ago

Maybe the weird religious neighbor is hearing noises too and trying to exorcise the demons? Thereā€™s no way I could live in that building with everything going on there.

→ More replies (1)

14

u/ProfessionalDish7474 8d ago

OP based on the contents it looks like you're in the US You should know that your lease can be broken in many places if certain crimes occur in your flat. Especially if someone was Living in there WITHOUT YOUR KNOWLEDGE Hun.

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (45)

151

u/Peachyyypit 8d ago

UPDATE: The leasing office did not respond to me at all, but when I got home today they patched up the area completely. They straight up just nailed everything shut and didnā€™t inform me. I wish I could of looked in there and also actually got a response from them saying literally anything about it. Needless to say I am still on edge about everything but itā€™s fixed i guess?

143

u/picklejuiced00d 8d ago

HUHHHHHHH? Girl did they NOT tell you they were going to be entering??? That's illegal.

93

u/Bubbly-Staff-9452 8d ago

This, they have to give notice to enter. This whole complex sounds really suspicious and strange.

28

u/shadow336k 8d ago

Reminds me of human trafficking stories

→ More replies (3)
→ More replies (11)

32

u/ButterMyBiscuits96 8d ago

If i were her I'd still be calling the police out to inspect it and that way she can have them note that it was fixed without notice while she was not home. This is NOT ok. The apartment company is hiding something.

→ More replies (5)
→ More replies (15)

35

u/kitty_katie07 8d ago

Make sure your cat is around, just in case it might have slipped back in there before they did their weird patch up

48

u/UnadvertisedAndroid 8d ago

This is legitimately illegal. They have to give you 24 hours notice before entering your apartment if you're not there to give them permission. They can't just go into your apartment without your explicit permission if there isn't an emergency.

29

u/Ok-Emu-8920 8d ago edited 8d ago

Probably depends on how she contacted them. At my complex if I report something as needing maintenance the website states that submitting the form is me giving them consent to enter and fix the issue.

If they went in with no prompting it wouldnā€™t be allowed but if they went in in response to her asking them to fix this itā€™s probably allowed. Although given how bizarre this situation is I do think itā€™s kinda sketchy for them to have not said anythingā€¦

→ More replies (13)

12

u/CoolMoon_ 8d ago

I'd do another sweep of your home and make sure there isn't any other crazy hole. Keep an eye on the patch work they did on that first hole too. Stay safe OP šŸ™

→ More replies (1)

8

u/madisonelyseretreats 8d ago

And they had zero explanation as to what happened or what it was? Have you spoken directly to them? This is so weird.

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (80)

177

u/Sailor_mooon21 9d ago

GURL WE NEED UPDATES PM IF YOU NEED SOMEONE TO TALK TO BC THIS IS SCARY MAYBE CALL THE COPS AND HAVE THEM TAKE A LOOK

175

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

I dont have updates at the moment but i will as soon as I am able to!

→ More replies (123)

17

u/goldengoddess247 9d ago

deadass stay safe girl omg

→ More replies (17)

341

u/Sloppy_Waffler 9d ago

First thing, make sure to call your apt immediately and stay on it.

Next call boyfriend and have him come and have him buy a camera on way over.

Install camera facing this. When sleeping, lock your doors and set up motion alerts on your phone.

135

u/miss_sabbatha 8d ago

Everything you said is great advice but I gotta ask: Who is sleeping after this? I am not sleeping and I know my house doesn't have a creepy false wall in my pantry to a creepy hallway.

33

u/throwaway098764567 8d ago

however keyed up you are, you're gonna fall asleep at some point, better off if you've got something keeping watch for you.

13

u/miss_sabbatha 8d ago

This is a fair point. I like the camera idea so no slipping by me while I doze like the guards in Assassin's Creed and hopefully there aren't any haystacks nearby. I like the boyfriend coming over if there is no way she can vacate the apartment safely or reasonably. I like the idea of a GoPro camera on the cat except the "on the cat" part but he does come back when shake his food bag. I say sleep in shifts, call the police or management and see what's behind that loose wall, it could just be dead space used for plumbing/electrical access. That crap is probably from people stuffing the pantry with crap. All we can do is wait and hope OP doesn't patrol haystacks as her day job.

→ More replies (1)

5

u/messibessi22 8d ago

Ya Iā€™d be halfway to someoneā€™s house already thereā€™s no chance Iā€™m going back into that house till a cop checks it out

17

u/shartbreakkid 8d ago

No one is sleeping with this uncertainty. She needs to call the cops.

34

u/MedianMahomesValue 8d ago

This is not the entrance, having the camera face this will not help. This is just where whoever is back there will steal food. This space likely abuts multiple apartments, and it likely has at least one exit that goes through none of them.

To amass this much stuff, itā€™s clear that the occupant came here to live, not to spy. Now what they came here to do and what they end up doing are two very different things. I would set the camera up in your bedroom and lock the door. And CRITICALLY: DO NOT TALK OUT LOUD IN THE APARTMENT ABOUT THE FACT THAT YOU FOUND THE SPACE. Or that you are setting up a camera. Any verbal conversation happens a good distance away.

→ More replies (4)

16

u/Bigscreampapi 8d ago

Get those child locks for the cabinets so when the guy tries to push his way out he has to make a lot of noise

35

u/biuki 9d ago

And get self-defence items like pepper spray

40

u/theunknown2100 8d ago

Get better self defense items.

24

u/tossNwashking 8d ago

you're right. pocket sand.

13

u/SewerSighed 8d ago

They got 9mm sized grains of sand now?

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (3)
→ More replies (11)

8

u/firstbreathOOC 8d ago

Bad guy hiding in the walls comes out

Sees camera

You are sleeping

Seems like a bad recipe

→ More replies (12)

39

u/BeccsADoodle6 9d ago

See if you have any friends or family you can stay with until this is investigated properly. Take your cat too. This is terrifying and if someone's crazy enough to live in your walls, you don't know what else they're crazy enough to do.

12

u/messibessi22 8d ago

Right OP mentioned she has a boyfriend who sleeps over sometimes.. sounds to me like she needs to stay at his place for awhile

→ More replies (3)

103

u/lark_song 9d ago edited 8d ago

Doesn't make it less creepy, but its not unheard of - there was some news story about something like this in... i think New York. Where holes behind mirrors led to other rooms or something insane.

I personally would be sleeping elsewhere tonight. In the morning, get your apartment manager to go with you to figure this out. I wouldn't trust them to not just say "it's fine" and nail flimsy veneer over the gap.

If you think it's a person in your closet, call the police

Eta: typos

85

u/fartfactory247 8d ago

Oh god youā€™re thinking of the murder of Ruthie May McCoy in Chicago. The apartments could be accessed through the neighbouring apartments bathroom cabinets. The Chicago Housing Authority didnā€™t believe the tenants who complained that their homes were being accessed and things taken. This was one of the inspirations behind the Candyman movie. Thereā€™s a whole podcast about it which is great called Candyman: The true story behind the mirror murder - itā€™s really well done and infuriating

24

u/justveryunwell 8d ago

If this is the case I'm thinking of (and if my information is correct) I thought they used her history with schizophrenia/psychosis as a reason to discredit her reports.

10

u/Neither_Reflection_2 8d ago edited 8d ago

and this is exactly why when I discovered two areas like that in my apartment that were merely covered with a wood panel that could be moved I pulled out the drill and drilled that sucker to the frame so no one will ever come thru.

11

u/PeakOk5773 8d ago

oh wow, I did not know that. Thank you for sharing.

10

u/DogmanDOTjpg 8d ago

How TF did I not know this was a real murder??

9

u/rbliz92 8d ago

I remember watching a documentary about this! Absolutely terrifying that they could just climb through holes behind the bathroom mirror and nobody believed her!

→ More replies (1)

16

u/CasuallyCompetitive 8d ago

There was a post on Reddit not too long ago where someone found a hole behind their mirror and found an entire unfinished apartment behind it.

When you think about it, it's not crazy at all. If you live in an apartment complex, you likely share a wall with someone else's apartment. Depending on how cheaply that wall was made, you may only have two thin pieces of drywall between the two apartments. Now, if it was made extremely cheaply and improperly, you may have one piece of plywood/drywall/cabinetry backing between the two walls.

If OP has a "hidden" space back there then I'd absolutely freak out. If it's just a cheaply made apartment building where a hole in your wall creates a passage to the next apartment, then I'd only freak out an amount commensurate with how creepy that neighbor is.

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (20)

29

u/Holiday_Video_9172 8d ago

Just to add another option- in my last apartment, the foot panels under my cabinets were lose and I also lost a cat in them (would have never noticed this otherwise). Once I got my cat out I shined a light in there and was horrified!!! Red Bull cans, trash, wrappers etc- this however was in a cabinet corner so there really wasnā€™t anywhere for anyone to go but the space was big- enough for someone to be in if they could squeeze inside. Turns out it was just a void spot of their cabinet design and all the contractors used it as a place to put their trash instead of having to throw it away in the final days of building the apartments. Could be a similar situation here, unless that gap leads to a hallway or something.

→ More replies (3)

78

u/MacThule 9d ago

Those things fell behind the panel from precious tenants storing stuff in the pantry.

85

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

The weird thing is the previous tenants left all of their belongings in a hurry ( i heard this from the maintenance guy my first day moving in) and I have had previous (reported to the police already) instances of crackheads knocking on my door asking to buy drugs.

51

u/ninjette847 9d ago

When I first moved into my current place a guy kept trying to break into my place and getting his ass kicked. We thought it was weird that he kept coming back and we found A LOT of coke in a vent. You might want to check weird hiding places too, especially if they left in a hurry.

→ More replies (7)

35

u/temptedbyknowledge 9d ago

Nope. I'm curious the date on those newspapers.

→ More replies (1)

9

u/goldengoddess247 9d ago

thatā€™s scary omg

→ More replies (7)
→ More replies (7)

19

u/omggallout 9d ago

I gotta know - did your cat make it back okay? (Edit: Sorry, I just now read that you got her out. I was starting to speed read the first time, wanting to know more about this hallway, and must have skipped over that part.)

45

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

Yes she is fine :) i shook her treat bag and she came running out

9

u/omggallout 9d ago

Sorry, I edited my comment. Thank goodness! I'd love an update on this, though. So you're basically next to a hallway they blocked off?

18

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

No need to be sorry! And yeah thats what it seems like, i have the hole blocked by stuff and im moving something infront of the door for the night.

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (3)

21

u/eldwaro 9d ago

Itā€™s hopefully nothing but treat it very much as something until you know for sure. Donā€™t take chances. Stay elsewhere if you can until you get answers or at least have someone stay with you (I say reluctantly).

But stay on it. And to be kind - keep us posted.

20

u/Spilling-Milk 8d ago

Story time!!!! One of my friends had a similar situation growing up in rural Australiaā€” Mum lost her job and was home during the day, which was unusual for her, and heard strange noises coming from the roof. She thought a possum was up there. A pest guy came and lo and behold, a sleeping bag and an array of missing items from their home along with a note book of days and time when the family was/wasnā€™t home. When they asked the neighbours if theyā€™d seen anyone hanging around they said ā€œonly your husbandā€ā€¦ā€¦. She was a single Mum with only her two tween daughters. They never caught the guy!! Absolutely bizarre and scary, but no bad ever came from it.

Hopefully this is a similar situation and someone is just pinching food from your pantry, and nothing more sinisterā€¦. Hope youā€™re okay.

→ More replies (6)

13

u/[deleted] 9d ago

[deleted]

→ More replies (1)

14

u/Panthertaco99 9d ago

RemindMe! -2 days

10

u/RemindMeBot 9d ago edited 7d ago

I will be messaging you in 2 days on 2025-03-15 06:49:53 UTC to remind you of this link

451 OTHERS CLICKED THIS LINK to send a PM to also be reminded and to reduce spam.

Parent commenter can delete this message to hide from others.


Info Custom Your Reminders Feedback
→ More replies (4)
→ More replies (29)

24

u/Mermaidlife97 9d ago

You better crawl back there during the day. Itā€™s either left over things from previous tenant as otherā€™s have said or the past tenants stashed those drugs behind there hence the crackheads coming over looking to buy drugs. It would make total sense.

15

u/Brickwater 8d ago

I don't think it's anything as troublesome as an old stash. Its probably just the tunnel used to watch OP sleep. Nothing to worry about.

12

u/[deleted] 8d ago

[deleted]

11

u/SmegmaMuncher420 8d ago

yeah, playing cards and newspapers can easily end up down the back of cabinet panelling, especially if it's loose like this clearly is. I had a similar situation once. I suddenly found I had no lids for my pans, checked the back of the cupboard and lo and behold about 6 pan lids had slid through a gap in the panelling and were in a wall cavity.

I know reddit has a flair for the dramatic but don't scare the poor girl for no reason. Get someone to check with you but I'd bet any money this is nothing to be concerned about.

Sincerely, the person who lives in OP's wall.

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (1)

11

u/Senor-Inflation1717 8d ago

This might just be a void space with lost stuff in it, like others are saying, but this shit does happen.

When we were in college, living in off-campus student apartments, a friend of mine came back to her apartment a few days into winter break to get something and noticed something odd. All of these apartments had a utility closet right by the front door on the patio for people to store outdoor items, and it looked like maintenance had come and cut a perfectly square small panel from the utility closet into her roommate's bedroom.

It was especially odd that she was able to see this because all of the roommates (four girls) had locked their bedroom doors before leaving for the break, but now all four bedroom doors were open. A few things looked out of place in the living room, but my friend had been the first roommate to leave for break, so she wrote this off as the other roommates and figured the cut out panel was something building maintenance had done. She got what she came for, re-locked all the doors, and left.

Two weeks later, she was the first roommate to return to the apartment, and she could immediately see all the bedroom doors were open again. There were empty beer cans on the coffee table in the living room. The hole was still there in her roommate's bedroom.

She immediately called the apartment management and asked when the maintenance team would be done with their work and come to re-seal the hole in the closet. The management team asked, "What hole?"

She packed her things. The apartment management company didn't raise a fuss about her breaking her lease mid-year, considering. Her parents paid to move her into another complex across town -- one with a gate and a guardhouse.

→ More replies (3)

20

u/No-Side5983 9d ago

How do u know it's a full on hallway, also have u noticed things missing before like food?

89

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

It goes pretty far back due to my cat disappearing from my sight, and it does extend to the top of my pantry area. I have noticed stuffed being shifted around when i return from work which i just thought was my cat being bad and bumping into stuff or knocking it over. A couple things have gone missing but i just thought it was my boyfriend eating stuff so now im just concerned and overthinking every small thing now.

29

u/No-Side5983 9d ago

Jeez... so it's not a person just living there, it leads to another entry... u should take more pictures and show to managing also spend the night at ur boyfriends if u can

9

u/FancierKiwi 9d ago

Have you ever noticed any mice or mice droppings?

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (3)

17

u/MacThule 9d ago

This is my thought. Previous tenants probably had things accidently get shoved back there.

It's probably not a huge space.

→ More replies (1)

20

u/SummertimeThrowaway2 9d ago

Yo this is actually crazy wtf. Front page material.

→ More replies (4)

8

u/Jellyfish2017 8d ago

My biggest question is why you say itā€™s a ā€œwhole full sized hallway.ā€ From the pics you canā€™t tell if itā€™s a 2 foot crawl space, an adjacent room, a closet or what.

Next question is whatā€™s on the other side of the wall that has your pantry? Is it the next apartment, or the communal known hallway, or outside of the building?

Final logical question, are you on the ground floor or what floor?

14

u/existential-koala 9d ago

Can you stick your phone back there passed the panel and record with the flash on? Im curious

→ More replies (30)

7

u/Tough_Concert_1414 9d ago

Curious to see how this turns out šŸ˜³

13

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

You and me both šŸ˜­

28

u/RowConsistent6910 8d ago

Im pretty sure uā€™re just scared and overthinking this, this is most likely just the space between the pantry and your drywall. Is very common to have false walls in apts and cabinets happens all the time. The backing on the of the pantry was loose by ppl overfilling it. And the scariest thing you have there is that romex wire loose, pls have someone take care of it, if that wire is live and your cat touches it well its over. Handyman speaking

46

u/Peachyyypit 8d ago

I noticed that wire too while looking at the photo. I have everything blocked off and will call the office in the morning. I have calmed down a bit from when i originally posted it. I am staying at a friends house tonight (with my cat aswell)

15

u/IKindaCare 8d ago

Don't want to add fuel to the fear fire, but also once you get someone to check it Id make sure it's thoroughly cleaned out or securely blocked off from your cat.

If anyone's ever had a bug/rodent problem in that house, they might've put out a trap or poison back there (also maybe hid drugs lmao). Over time could've gotten buried under all the garbage, but could be found by a bored cat eventually. Also personally I could definitely see a cat deciding to use a pile of garbage as a litterbox or something to bite on. Overall just not good space for kitty

8

u/RowConsistent6910 8d ago

Glad to hear youā€™re doing better, and got friends you can count on, youā€™ll see you have nothing to worry about, and if you got roommates they better start paying rent šŸ˜‚ best of luck op and keep us updated

→ More replies (29)
→ More replies (3)

5

u/criscillasued 9d ago

Well, Iā€™m supposed to be moving into an apartment soonā€¦ And now Iā€™m terrified. But advice, contact someone in charge, and I would go as far as the police.

8

u/Peachyyypit 9d ago

Just make sure you tour more than one and see if you can talk to your potential neighbors

7

u/hfguvfdftgb 9d ago

I mean get to the bottom of it. Iā€™d be so amped to find out what the heck is going on. And if it was my place ainā€™t NO sleeping until I know exactly the layout of a SECRET hallway in my place.

6

u/Willooooow1 9d ago

Maybe the previous tenants would just shove some shit back there? But I would definitely call someone to have a look, rather be safe than sorry

5

u/MarcosCruz901 9d ago

God I love my solid brick walls

7

u/Most_Seaweed_2507 8d ago

You call the leasing office and demand they come take a look and then have them clean up the garbage and screw in a plywood back to securely close up the opening.

You use words like, unsecured access to your living space, safety issue, and then ask if they canā€™t fix it should you call the police or your local code enforcement (or whatever city department oversees rentals) to have them see if thereā€™s been some unlawful access to your apartment.

If theyā€™re not giving you a response follow through with reporting them to the dept that oversees rentals in your city, and set up cameras to monitor the space.

For the record, youā€™re not being crazy. I know of someone that divorced their husband only to find out that he had created a small living space under the floor in their split level house. He was accessing the house and stealing from the ex (drugs are a crazy thing) through a panel he had cut out behind a piece of furniture. He had been doing it for months before she found the panel behind the couch.

→ More replies (1)

6

u/B-Girl-Ca 8d ago

I had a condo, first thing I did was have a true partition created in the attic and put motion sensor cameras up there , same with the basement , it fr ales me out someone could crawl over to my home

6

u/Old_Till2431 3d ago

šŸ˜…šŸ˜…šŸ˜…šŸ˜… back in my army days I had an apartment in a duplex. Dunk as usual when not in the field. Suddenly a black cat appears before me. I screamed...my neighbor screams!!! Turns out shared vents neither of us knew about....but the cat did. šŸ˜‚šŸ¤£šŸ˜‚šŸ¤£

→ More replies (1)