14 DAY TRIAL // More often than not, it's police officers who have to deal with burglars. Still, this past Sunday, it was a group of firefighters that were kept fairly busy for several hours by a would-be criminal in California, US.
Long story short, the firefighters were called in and asked to help free a burglar who, while trying to break into a home in the city of Thousand Oaks, somehow got stuck in the chimney.
In case anyone was wondering, no, the unlucky chimney explorer that the firefighters rescued was not Santa Claus. Not even Santa Claus' wife or long lost daughter, for that matter.
The burglar was a 30-year-old woman named Genoveva Nunez-Figueroa, who, for reasons still unknown, was determined to have a look inside this one house in Thousand Oaks, California.
An unusual rescue operation
It is understood that 30-year-old Genoveva Nunez-Figueroa climbed inside the chimney of the house sometime in the early hours of the morning on Sunday. While working her way down, she became stuck.
Oddly enough, the homeowner failed to realize that something was seriously off. Thus, it was neighbors who first heard the woman's cries for help and alerted the authorities.
Upon arrival, firefighters realized that the 30-year-old was stuck too deep inside the chimney for them to be able to simply pull her out. Thus, in order to free her, they had to destroy part of the chimney and soak her in dish soap.
“Chimney flue was lubricated with dish soap prior to hoisting patient,” explained Ventura County Fire Department spokesperson Captain Mike Lindbery, as cited by Daily Mail.
Despite the fact that she spent several hours inside the chimney before finally being rescued, Genoveva Nunez-Figueroa was still conscious at the time the firefighters pulled her out. She didn't suffer any major injuries and is expected to soon make a full recovery.
She didn't pick that house by chance
Information shared with the public by the police officers in charge of investigating this case says that the home the woman attempted to break into this past Sunday belongs to a man whom she not too long ago met on a dating website.
Yesterday's incident wasn't Genoveva Nunez-Figueroa's first attempt to have a better look at the inside of the man's house. “It’s actually the second attempt for her trying to access the inside of my house from the roof,” the homeowner said in a statement.
“I’m feeling better, not so weirded out anymore that that person isn’t in my chimney anymore. Trying to figure out what I’m going to do with my chimney since it’s in pieces but better my chimney than probably me,” he added.
Probably hoping to convince the homeowner not to press charges, the 30-year-old woman's family claim to be ready and willing to cover the full cost of rebuilding the chimney. Hopefully, Genoveva Nunez-Figueroa won't get stuck in the new one and ruin it as well.
