Cops arrest NAKED man dwelling within the crawl house of 93-year-old lady
A naked man was found living in the crawlspace of a home owned by an elderly woman, California cops have revealed.
The disturbing discovery was made in Los Angeles Thursday night, and sent the unidentified 93-year-old’s family into a frenzy that lasted into the following day.
They say the man, 27-year-old Isaac Betancourt, had been holed up there for up to six months, secretly residing underneath the senior’s floorboards like something out of a horror movie.
Cops, as a result, spent hours trying to flush him out, eventually resorting to tear gas. An arrest followed.
Ricardo Silva, the woman’s son-in-law, recalled how noises he and his family had been hearing suddenly grew louder Thursday – leading him to call police.
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A naked man was found living in the crawlspace of a home owned by an elderly woman in Los Angeles Thursday night – leading to his arrest.
The suspect (seen here) was identified by the Los Angeles Police Department as 27-year-old Isaac Betancourt
‘The noises were kind of like knocking,’ he told NBC News following Betancourt’s arrest early Friday.
‘It was kind of like, as my wife was walking, they were kind of knocking back from under the house,’ he continued.
‘So she says, “You know something’s wrong.”‘
‘It was usually late at night, and we just chucked it off to animals being under the house,’ he added of the months of the strange sounds that helped arouse their suspicions.
When asked about the situation’s inherent strangeness, he conceded it was ‘bizarre’ but ‘probably [not] uncommon.
‘You know – in this day and age, people are looking for shelter,’ he reasoned, pointing to the area’s housing prices.
He added how he and his family are now securing the entry-point Betancourt had apparently used for weeks – in hopes of deterring any other guests.
Meanwhile, the man found living in the shallow, unfinished space under the home following the 911 call was found fully nude, and was seen being stretchered into an ambulance by members of the Los Angeles Police when all was said and done.
Relatives of the elderly woman said the man had been holed up under the home for up to six months, secretly residing under the floorboard like something out of The Telltale Heart
The disturbing discovery was mad Thursday night, and sent the 93-year-old’s family into a frenzy that lasted into the following day
They say the man, 27-year-old Isaac Betancourt, had been holed up there for up to six months, secretly residing underneath the senior’s floorboards like something out of a horror movie
Ricardo Silva, the woman’s son-in-law, recalled how noises he and his family had been hearing suddenly grew louder Thursday – leading him to call police
However, he did not go without a fight, cops and relatives both said – describing the barricade incident that ensued when he refused to go quietly.
Apparently hesitant to give up the housing arrangement, Betancourt told cops to take a hike – leading to an operation that lasted several hours and forced the elderly woman to find somewhere else to sleep for the night.
‘He refused to leave,’ Silva recalled Saturday. ‘He wasn’t scared of the dogs, and the first two attempts at gas didn’t fish him out.’
He added how the commandeered space being scrutinized only two-feet high – and had a total of three entry-points that allowed Betancourt literal breathing room as he cops sought to smoke him out.
Eventually, after multiple hours, they were successful, Silva said – and the nightmare for his mother-in-law was seemingly over.
The grandmother, who lives alone, then told him and other relatives that the sounds had plaguing her for months, and that her grandson had merely dismissed them as stemming from an animal.
the grandson, asking to not be named, went on to tell KCAL News how the man surrendered to avoid suffocation around 4:30am, and how officers afterward found an array of blankets and food under the house.
A subsequent statement from the LAPD revealed how Betancourt (seen here being loaded into an ambulance) is now charged with trespassing, as records on the police force’s website show the suspect has a history of arrests, with at least five in the LA area over the past two years
A subsequent statement from the LAPD revealed how Betancourt is now charged with trespassing, as records on the police force’s website show the suspect has a history of arrests, with at least five in the LA area over the past two years.
All the arrests were for felonies, though it remains unclear as of writing the nature or outcomes of those cases.
DailyMail.com has reached out to the LAPD for more information, as their investigation continues.
