A student who thought there was a ghost in her room was shocked to find a man in her closet, wearing her clothes. The University of North Carolina junior, who was only identified by her first name Maddie, told Fox8 she had noticed items in her room vanishing at her off-campus apartment on 1214 Oakland Avenue. She also spotted hand prints on her bathroom wall.
On Saturday, Maddie heard what she thought sounded like a raccoon in her closet. When she asked who was there a man answered, "Oh, my name is Drew."
Maddie told CBS News affiliate WFMY2 she asked the man whether he was going to do anything to her, to which he replied "No, no, no."
"I could feel him starting to push the door open so I was, like, I guess I have to open the door," she said. The man pleaded with her not to call the cops.
Maddie told Fox8: "I open the door and he's in there, wearing all of my clothes. My socks. My shoes. And he has a book bag full of my clothes." She phoned her boyfriend to help. As she waited, she spoke to the man to keep him occupied.
Maddie said the man tried on her hat, and went into the bathroom to look in the mirror before telling her: "You're really pretty, can I give you a hug?'"
"But he never touched me," Maddie said. "We always joke that there's a ghost in here because I've been missing clothes since I've been living here, like shirts—like a shirt at a time or pants at this time—it makes me think he's been here before," she told WFMY2.
Police identified the man as 30-year-old Andrew Clyde Swofford. He was arrested on charges including breaking and entering a building, larceny, identity theft, and possessing stolen goods, according to police documents. Swofford was taken to Guilford County jail, and given a $26,000 bond, Fox 8 reported.
This was not an isolated incident. In December, the flatmates came home to find two men in their living room, Maddie told Fox 8. Burkely Communities, which manages the residence, told Fox 8 they are investigating how the men entered the property. The firm changed the locks following the December incident, but did not contact police as it was not protocol.
Maddie told Fox 8 she is now so afraid of being in her own home that she has been sleeping in her roommate's bed. Maddie told WFMY2 she is leaving her residence, and has signed a contract for another place.
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Kashmira Gander is Deputy Science Editor at Newsweek. Her interests include health, gender, LGBTQIA+ issues, human rights, subcultures, music, and lifestyle. Her ... Read more
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