Man arrested for living in crawl space of condo complex for ‘extended period of time’: Sheriff

(HAPPY VALLEY, Ore.) — A man in Oregon was arrested for living in a crawl space of a condominium complex for an “extended period of time,” according to the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office.

Beniamin Bucur, 40, was arrested on Wednesday after officials investigated a “suspicious circumstance at a condominium complex” in Clackamas County near Happy Valley, the sheriff’s office said in a press release last week.

On Wednesday at around 11 p.m., a witness reported seeing a man “who was not known to live in the complex parking his car and walking to the back of one of the buildings,” officials said.

Upon further investigation, the witness also noticed the “door to the crawl space was open and light was coming from inside,” according to authorities.

Once officials arrived at the scene, they said they noticed the door to the space was “damaged and now locked,” along with an extension cord running through a vent.

Deputies reached out to the owner of the complex, who said “nobody was supposed to be down there” and that they had heard “strange noises coming from the crawl space before,” officials said.

When the keys the owner gave deputies did not unlock the door to the space, officials “breached the door and located the man,” identified as Bucur, according to authorities.

Bucur had taken “significant steps to improve the conditions of the crawl space,” with a bed, lights, chargers, televisions and other electronics all found “plugged into the house,” the sheriff’s office said.

A pipe with white residue that “tested positive for methamphetamine” was also found at the scene, according to officials.

Bucur was transported to the Clackamas County Jail where he was booked on charges of first-degree burglary and the unlawful possession of methamphetamine, authorities said.

The suspect’s preliminary hearing was on Thursday, with his bail set to $75,000, officials said.

It remains unclear whether Bucur has an attorney who can speak on his behalf.