A North Park woman got the shock of her life when she opened up her garage last week.
Jenny Wright told 10News the ordeal started with an open lock, and then a missing lock on her garage unit at her apartment. She said she thought she might have forgotten to put the lock on, but then came a disturbing discovery.
On Thursday, she saw a light coming from the garage, which she uses as a storage unit. When she opened it up, she saw the mess that used to be a neatly organized garage.
"You feel violated. I came in and saw paint cans with lids off and a bucket full of some sort of liquid," said Wright.
Inches away, there were some five soda bottles and cans full of urine.
"Entered a little further and saw tin foil with burn marks," said Wright.
On a blanket put over an air conditioning unit was a scattering of drug paraphernalia. Nearby, she found her new mattress now full of stains, including footprints.
Wright said there was a bicycle and clothes that didn't belong to her.
She also noticed things missing, including clothes and purses.
"It's no big deal what they took. It's that they were living here and brazen enough to do it right in the middle of the neighborhood," said Wright.
In December, an apartment manager suffered a broken leg after being attacked with a bat after catching a homeless man sleeping in a complex in North Park.
"I am more sad than angry," said Wright.
Wright, who volunteered for years in homeless outreach, said the increase in the number of homeless in the area has her concerned.
"It's sad there seems to be a whole different type of person coming into the neighborhood. I'm scared, frankly. I'm sure he wouldn't have been in a good mood if I opened the door on his drug den," said Wright.
Wright was told by police the person who broke in likely used bolt cutters and could have been living inside the garage for weeks.
