An Arkansas couple were left stunned after discovering a stranger had been secretly living in their basement; only uncovered after they installed surveillance cameras to investigate food mysteriously going missing. The incident, reported in Searcy, has raised questions about how long the man may have gone unnoticed inside the occupied home.
Dutch Hoggatt and his wife Sharon began noticing unusual disturbances around their house over several weeks in April. Everyday items appeared to be out of place, and food supplies kept disappearing.
The unexplained pattern prompted them to install indoor cameras, which eventually captured the presence of an unknown man moving around the house at night.
The situation escalated when their daughter and son-in-law visited the home and made a direct discovery in the basement, leading to a confrontation and police involvement.
Missing food and strange movements inside home
The couple first became suspicious after routine items began vanishing or being shifted without explanation.
“I came in looking for my work shoes. I always leave them by the back door. My work shoes were gone,” Hoggatt told KTHV. He added that over time, chairs were found moved and food items kept disappearing, deepening their concern.
Concerned by the developments, their son-in-law Mark Gregory decided to inspect the property. “We stopped by our house. I grabbed my bat and a gun just in case,” Gregory said. “We didn’t know what to expect.”
During the search, Gregory said his partner noticed “a leg sticking out” from beneath stairs leading to the basement.
Suspect discovered in makeshift basement space
Gregory entered the area and confronted the man, later identified as 41-year-old Preston Landis, who had allegedly been living in a makeshift setup in the basement.
As Sharon called police, Gregory struck the door with a baseball bat, demanding the man reveal himself. The suspect eventually fled the home, according to the family.
Camera footage later showed the man walking around the house shirtless during the night while the homeowners were asleep.
Despite the intrusion, the family said no major valuables were missing.
“I don’t think he was trying to be a bad guy. There were plenty of opportunities where he could have taken things. It seemed like he was just trying to get out of the elements, trying to survive,” Gregory said.
Their daughter, Cherrise, added that the man apologised, saying, “Tell your folks that I’m really sorry and they seem like really nice people.”
Authorities later arrested Landis, who has been charged with residential burglary and theft of property. He was booked by the White County Sheriff’s Office, where his bond was set at $15,000.
