Archive · 12 Aug 2026
Queens Couple Finds Stranger Inside Their Home on Vacation
A married couple named Bill and Yelim Kim went on vacation to Yellowstone National Park.
While they were away, their home security camera sent them an alert.
The camera showed a woman they did not know walking around their apartment.
She sat on their couch, got herself a drink, and looked very comfortable, like she lived there.
When she noticed the camera, she took it off the bookshelf so they could no longer see.
The couple called the police and asked friends to check on their home.
Their friend confronted the woman, who left but came back using a set of keys.
Police arrived and the woman was taken away in an ambulance.
The building said the woman claimed to be the couple's dog walker and got their key by mistake, and the worker who gave it to her was fired.
The woman came back to the building two days later wearing a hospital bracelet, but security stopped her this time.
Bill and Yelim Kim were on the final night of a Yellowstone National Park trip on July 24 when their home security system alerted them to a stranger inside their Long Island City apartment.
Live camera footage showed an unfamiliar woman relaxing on the couch and helping herself to a drink; she removed the camera from the bookshelf when she noticed it.
The woman left after being confronted by the couple's friend but returned minutes later and unlocked the door with a set of keys.
Building management said the woman claimed to be the couple's dog walker and was mistakenly given their key at the front desk; the employee involved was fired and staff will be retrained on identity verification.
The woman returned to the building two days later wearing a hospital bracelet but was stopped by security; the NYPD is investigating the incident as a burglary and nothing was stolen.
- Who
- Bill and Yelim Kim, a married couple from Queens, and an unidentified woman who entered their apartment
- What
- A stranger entered the couple's apartment while they were on vacation, discovered via their home security camera; nothing was stolen
- When
- July 24, on the final night of the couple's vacation
- Where
- The couple's apartment in the luxury Halo LIC building on Purves Street, Long Island City, Queens, New York City
- Why
- A building doorman allegedly mistakenly gave the woman a key; she claimed to be the couple's dog walker
Mistaken Key Handoff
Criminal Intrusion
How the woman entered
Mistaken Key Handoff
Building management said the woman claimed to be the Kims' dog walker and was mistakenly given their apartment key at the front desk; the employee involved was fired.
Criminal Intrusion
The couple saw an unfamiliar woman relaxing in their home, and she used a set of keys to get back inside after being confronted; police are investigating the incident as a burglary.
The woman's state and intent
Mistaken Key Handoff
The woman appeared distressed, wore a hospital bracelet, and was taken away in an ambulance, suggesting she was in need of help rather than acting as a criminal.
Criminal Intrusion
The couple feared what she might have done if not caught on camera, said the apartment no longer feels safe, and are frantically looking for a new place to live.
- Incident
- Stranger found inside couple's apartment during vacation
- Location
- Luxury Halo LIC building, Purves Street, Long Island City, Queens
- Date
- July 24
- Detection
- Home security system with live camera feed alerted the couple
- Woman's claim
- She said she was the couple's dog walker and got the key by mistake
- Aftermath
- Front desk employee fired; staff retraining on identity verification planned
- Police status
- NYPD investigating as burglary; woman not publicly identified or charged
- Theft
- Nothing stolen from the apartment