A homeless man was found living in a basement utility safe in downtown Los Angeles. KTLA.
Surveillance video showed the man prying open the vault lid and jumping inside with a backpack.
The dire picture of homelessness in Los Angeles comes to light after a man was found in a basement utility safe. https://t.co/AbUcWhXKxu
— KTLA (@KTLA) July 8, 2023
The man’s alleged vault is located near the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo neighborhood. Exit I got it.
The museum’s chief financial officer, Doug Van Kirk, said security guards immediately called the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), according to KTLA. Police searched the man’s backpack and “found drug paraphernalia and what appeared to be a handgun,” Van Kirk said. CBS news.
The homeless man punched one of the police officers and was arrested on suspicion of trespassing and assaulting a police officer, KTLA said. (Related: NYPD officers face further attacks on the job)
Museum security said it wasn’t the first time a man had been found living in the museum, according to CBS News.
“He said he was sleeping here and drinking water from the spigot that he could see there. And he said this was his place,” said JANM security director.
Los Angeles police officials said the vault wasn’t sealed because it needed frequent access by maintenance workers, according to KTLA. The safe that the homeless man accessed was locked.
