Wal-Mart is a pretty hectic place, and it wouldn’t be hard to hide out there for a few hours without being noticed.
A 14-year-old boy managed to live in a Wal-Mart store in Texas for four days before he was finally noticed by employees.
The employees first noticed “secret hidden compounds” inside the store and became suspicious that someone may be trying to camp out there.
The teenager had made a bedding area behind some strollers in the baby section of the store and another in the paper towel and toilet paper section.
A 14-year-old Texas boy was caught living inside of a @Walmart for FOUR days. http://t.co/kBKA6k93TK pic.twitter.com/UTXOOtGHCo
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) August 13, 2014
He had also made a tunnel between the back wall of the drink aisle and his campsites so he could take drinks without being spotted. He was also eating food from inside the store.
The boy went out of his way to avoid getting caught and allegedly wore diapers so he did not have to go into the restrooms or leave his hidden areas often.
In the end, the teenager’s untidiness led to him being found and a group of employees were able to track a trail of trash to one of his hiding spots. The store contacted the police and the boy was later released to a relative.
A 14-year-old boy hides in a Texas @Walmart for 48 hours. https://t.co/jHZNlrn0Ab pic.twitter.com/IXaMqiG7SV
— [ Texas News ] (@getinsidetexas) August 14, 2014
Child Protective Services said that the teenager had been living with relatives but was visiting other family members when he decided to run away.
The police did not say why the boy had run away or if he or the family members in charge of him would be charged. It is not known how long the boy had planned to live in the store.
Image via Wikimedia Commons