‘Rooftop Ninja’ Discovered Living Inside Supermarket Sign

Workers at a supermarket in Michigan got quite a surprise recently when an unexpected guest was discovered living in the grocery store. But the woman wasn’t hiding in the back of the store; she’d made herself at home in the store’s sign. 

On April 23, contractors were working on the roof at the Family Fare Supermarket in Midland, Michigan when they discovered a woman living inside the sign atop the store. According to Midland Police Department spokesperson Brennon Warren, it wasn’t a typical store sign; there’s a 10- to 15-foot hollow peak atop the supermarket’s roof with the sign inside that one can access using a small door behind the sign. 

“[The contractors] had seen an extension cord leading from one of the rooftop units to this particular sign where she had been living,” Warren told USA Today. The door was “definitely big enough to kind of get into,” giving her an easy way to get in and out of her home. 

She hadn’t gone entirely unnoticed during the year or so that she lived there. She’d actually earned the nickname of “Rooftop Ninja” among locals because of her living in the sign and never being found. “People would see her from time to time and then all of a sudden she would vanish,” Warren said. “No one really knew where she went but no one ever indicated or thought that she would be up on top of the roof.”

The contractors told the store’s management who then called local police. Officers approached the woman on the roof, but according to Warren, “She came right to the door and basically said, ‘Don’t worry, I’m leaving.'” She “fully understood [she was trespassing] and she agreed not to go back,” he said. The Ninja had to leave some of her belongings behind but the store tracked her down and is helping her moving the rest of her stuff.  

Family Fare Supermarkets parent company SpartanNash shared its thoughts on the matter in a statement to Midland Daily News. 

“We are proud of our associates for responding to this situation with the utmost compassion and professionalism,” the company said. “Ensuring there is ample safe, affordable housing continues to be a widespread issue nationwide that our community needs to partner in solving.”

The Rooftop Ninja may be gone, but it remains an unforgettable case in the local community. 

“In my 10-year career here in Midland I have never seen a situation like this before,” Warren admitted. “You never would think this would happen, but I wish the best for her.”