# Homeless Man Arrested For Living in 15-Foot-Deep Man-Made Cave



## MolotovMocktail

This is pretty badass. It's a shame they threw him in jail and destroyed all his hard work. The video at the link below has more info and video of the cave itself. http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/l...in-Man-Made-Cave-361879121.html#ixzz3ucBsOZAH

*Homeless Man Charged With Destruction of Property for Living in 15-Foot-Deep Man-Made Cave*







A homeless man has been charged with property destruction after police discovered a 15-foot-deep cave they say he dug in a public park.

Yosue Joel Rios, 25, was arrested Sunday after police in Fairfax, Virginia found a man-made cave in Van Dyck Park. The painstakingly created home about 200 yards behind the headquarters of the City of Fairfax Police Department headquarters was discovered about 4:10 p.m. by people walking through the woods. The entrance was covered with plywood and leaves, police said.

"I haven't seen anything like it," police spokeswoman Sgt. Natalie Hinesley said.

Video shot by police shows steep steps leading to a split-level home of sorts. On one end of the cavern was a bedroom; on the other was a sunken living room. Inside, officers found books and papers that looked like homework assignments.

"He was studying several topics, from what it looked like," Hinesley said, noting officers found English language manuals. "He had an alphabet written out with the sounds."

He also appeared to be a student of the Bible, police said, and had carved into the cement-like walls the word " Adullam", the name of a cave where David hid from the King of Gath.

Staff members at the nearby nonprofit The Lamb Center said they knew Rios well and that he had just been there on Saturday for Bible study.

Officers also found inside a spade, a trowel and a pick ax, photos show.

Rios wasn't at the home he created when police entered and began to dismantle it. When he returned and said he lived inside, he was arrested and charged with destruction of property. Police said he also was wanted for failure to appear in court after a traffic charge in Arlington County. He was ordered held without bond.

By Monday afternoon, county crews had filled in the cave with dirt. It wasn't clear how long Rios had lived inside.

At last count, about 1,200 homeless people lived in Fairfax County.

A visitor to Van Dyck Park on Monday, Fareed Naimi, said he admired Rios.

"More power to him. He did something that most people don't do," he said. "He actually took a step to change his life and made his own little home where he could study."


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## Freerange Butters

This is some BULLSHIT right here! Fuck these anti homeless laws. We need to do something about this!


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## Matt Derrick

damn dude, that's crazy. that's cool that he was working so hard to have a decent shelter and educate himself. fucking lame as shit that he got arrested for digging a fucking hole.


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## Odin

The collective will not allow for independent thought or actions. 
Compliance is mandatory. 
You will be assimilated.

Seeing how it seems the lifestyle choice was inspired by the bible, I wonder if he can defend himself in court on the basis of freedom of religion...

I would have to see the area he was in but he could have hid the entrance better. 
After all that work a piece of plywood and some leaves was kinda weak camouflage.


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## wizehop

I just don't get why he built is so close to shit...


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## Matt Derrick

wizehop said:


> I just don't get why he built is so close to shit...



true... maybe he thought he was hiding in plain sight?


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## GabeNoscar

Building a cave sounds scary. What if it caved in on him...


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## EphemeralStick

Freerange Butters said:


> This is some BULLSHIT right here! Fuck these anti homeless laws. We need to do something about this!


It seems like its less of an anti homeless thing and more of a destruction of public property thing. If he had done the same in a more remote area he would have gotten of easier. Sucks that he got taken in all the same but he dug the hole 200 yards from a police station; that's just poor planning.


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## Sarong

ya I think the cave idea was epic but agree that a different location and hidden better shouldve been considered more carefully. I would b interested to know how long it took to dig that cave and how long he had stayed there. Im thinkin it took a min to dig and move all that dirt.


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## iflewoverthecuckoosnest

I love his choice of name for his home.


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## Kim Chee

Ah, he didn't destroy anything...it is all still there coppers.

Unwad thy undergarments.

Creating a public nuisance or danger, sure.

I'd be pissed if I fell through.

The closer I was to civilization, the less elaborate my shelter was.


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## Lightbearer

We are so conquered it shouldn't be a crime to find a little spot on Earth to friggin' survive on.


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## PotBellyFatGuy

could have pulled it off at a super remote location...but then again foxes, wolves, and other animals would try to eat him...there is no way the govt. would allow this. how dare he get off the grid? the govt. wants him paying for cable, electric, sewage, homeowner association fees, geico car insurance, blah blah. i absolutely admire this guy. living life on his own terms. his location ruined it. i am sure if he had done it very far but still not too far from civilization, it would have worked. reminds me of the chinese guy who got caught living on the manhattan bridge two years ago here in new york city:

http://nypost.com/2014/04/17/cops-evict-man-living-in-manhattan-bridge/


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## Raging Bird

I grew up in Fairfax, this is exactly the response I'd expect. Shouldn't come as a surprise that suburbs of Washington DC are highly authoritarian and police-oriented. I think a lot of travelers come from there, actually. It kind of drives you to it.


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## AlwaysLost

I will name my future bunker shelter 'Abdullum 2.0' in his honor. That's genius. My cave will be more remote however and will prolly cave in on me resulting in my home becoming my grave.


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## todd

town parks are an awful choice due to the foot traffic.


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## Renegade

That is insanely cool. I have wanted to do this. I also wonder how he moved tons of dirt with out being noticed.. thats one hell of a project..
 the people that found it should have just shut their mouths and kept walking.


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## Hobo Mud

Sad........


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## Escaper

Renegade said:


> That is insanely cool. I have wanted to do this. I also wonder how he moved tons of dirt with out being noticed.. thats one hell of a project..
> the people that found it should have just shut their mouths and kept walking.



Yeah my thoughts exactly, thats a lot of dirt to move! And the people that found it and told the police are sad, live and let live right. 

You gotta wonder about structural integrity too, how stable was this thing? Id be pretty scared of it caving in. And what happened when it rained a lot, would it flood and become a mess? 

Its so imteresring though, hes essentially done better than anyone else by taking matters into his own hands and building himself a home that is really space effective. And for this he is punished. I see a lot of unused spaces in cities and always dream up little designs for dwellings. I wish either the government would fuck off and let people do what they want at the expense of said individual, or if they have to be involved be many times more accepting and flexible in planning approvals. Its hard to do anything different even if it is your own land just because of the beaurocratic shitstorm that humanity has succumbed to. Rant over..


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## deleted user

judging by the looks of it, it seems very structurally intact. caves aren't too hard to keep integral so long as you don't go opening large areas with no proper support


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## rusty

Lol cops destroy his property and he gets charged? Just morally wrong.


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## cosmic girl

a handmade cave can be stable if you keep in mind to arch the walls and ceiling, and provide decent support pillars and-or beams, depending on the soil strata.


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## mouse

Matt Derrick said:


> damn dude, that's crazy. that's cool that he was working so hard to have a decent shelter and educate himself.



It reminds me a bit of fraternity hazing, where the abuse is kicked down from cohort to cohort:

"I had to pay for a house so _you_ have to pay for a house."


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## Shaggy Rogers

I remember this when this happened back a few years! Still fascinates me to the day that they would destroy his home.


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## PotBellyFatGuy

Raging Bird said:


> I grew up in Fairfax, this is exactly the response I'd expect. Shouldn't come as a surprise that suburbs of Washington DC are highly authoritarian and police-oriented. I think a lot of travelers come from there, actually. It kind of drives you to it.


this is also happening in california in parts where they have "tent cities." it's not just DC that's authoritarian.


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## BusGypsy

That really sucks. That's sad. He made a little home and wasn't even bothering anybody and they destroyed it. Poor guy.


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## train in vain

Some of you people seem mildly delusional haha. Maybe just MAYBE the guy shouldnt have dug a huge cave IN A PARK. If this dude dug a big ass hole in your back yard would you be cool with that? Should have found a better spot..it is a good idea.


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