No matter how much we vow to cut back on our usage of the Internet, within the next few minutes we’re going to reach for our phones or laptops or tabs or whatever. It’s just that. We’re all inevitably hooked. This is as much of an addiction as alcohol or drug abuse. Sure, the internet is a treasure trove of information. But do we really need to be watching that video on 15 new hot glue gun hacks at 3 a.m. in the morning? I think not.
But, you know you’ve gone too far when you start breaking into people’s homes at ungodly hours and wake them up just to ask for the WiFi password.
No, I’m not just making that up. This is a true as toast tale of a Californian teen.
A couple in their 60s were woken up in the middle of the night by a 17-year-old teen with his face covered, asking for the WiFi password.
Officers at the Palo Alto Police Station received a call at 12.31 a.m. on the 22nd of this month from the frazzled couple describing their unannounced visitor.
In case you are wondering, no the couple did not give them their WiFi password. Duh! They might as well have invited him for some warm milk and cookies.
According to Newsweek, the male resident of the house pushed the internet hungry teen out the front door before contacting the police.
He didn’t get away though. The police picked him up a block away from the elderly couple’s house wearing a black t-shirt wrapped around his neck under his sweatshirt.
And as it turns out, this wasn’t his first night-hunting session for WiFi either. CBS Sacramento reports that the teen burglar had pulled a similar stunt the night before at a different house where he had gone up to the window and asked the woman for -you guessed it- the WiFi password.
Apparently, the walking talking avatar of millennial stupidity claimed that he was out of data on his phone.
Ummm… what?!
His quest for the WiFi password was unsuccessful there as well since the residents shooed him off the property. He rode off on a bike and they thought that was that. It was only the next morning that they realised that his hot ride had been their own bicycle.
Lucky for them, the police found their bike near where they picked up the WiFi crook. They later released a statement saying:
“Overnight burglaries of occupied homes are very rare in Palo Alto. Police recommend securing side yard gates with a padlock, and promptly reporting any suspicious behaviour to authorities.”
The minor has been taken to the taken to Santa Clara County Juvenile Hall and is facing a felony charge of burglary.
I hope he has WiFi there.