‘He made himself at home.’ Man found living in rafters of Nevada supermarket, cops say

Workers preparing to open a Raley’s supermarket in Nevada got a surprise one morning when a man fell through the ceiling, according to The Fernley Reporter.

“He took a bad step and one of his feet went through the ceiling, exposing his foot to where people could see it and that’s what alerted the employees,” said Capt. Johnny Smith with the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office, reported The Reno Gazette Journal.

Deputies discovered Matthew Hammar, 35, had been living in the ceiling above the deli for several days, KOLO reported. He had reportedly been stealing food from the grocery.

“From my understanding, he did have a couple of tools and he did have a little spread because he had been pretty much living up there,” Smith said, The Reno Gazette Journal reported. “He had a few items to where he made himself at home.”

After his ceiling mishap at 5 a.m. Sept. 30, employees called 911 and sheriff’s deputies surrounded the store, KOLO reported.

A police K9 sent in after Hammar became stuck, but firefighters and deputies were able to rescue the dog, according to The Fernley Reporter.

Hammar, who authorities said is homeless, eventually surrendered and was arrested on suspicion of commercial burglary, KOLO reported.

This story was originally published October 18, 2020 at 2:56 PM with the headline "‘He made himself at home.’ Man found living in rafters of Nevada supermarket, cops say."