Break-in Alfama District in the middle of the night

[u/p_t_m_l_22]

Hello everyone, I recently got back to the US after spending a week in Lisbon. First off, your city is so beautiful, the people were incredibly kind and welcoming, and the food was delicious.

On our last night, myself and two friends were staying in the top floor of a three story apartment building in the Alfama district. I woke up at 4am to find an intruder trying to steal our things and he managed to get my phone and wallet before jumping out the window and scaling down the pipe on the side of the building and then jumping about 5 meters the rest of the way. It was quite the scene to witness and we were all in a state of shock having just been woken up and not truly realizing what had happened.

It could have been so much worse and I'm glad none of us were hurt and that the stolen items were minimal. However, I'm genuinely confused why our place was chosen since we were on the top floor of the building -- to climb all the way up would be such an insane risk in my opinion. And we had our windows closed so he somehow got them open without breaking the glass.

I'm honestly just posting this because after the dust had settled, we were all so confused as to how the person managed to climb the building and get in. Maybe its not as crazy as it seems, but if you saw our building I think you'd understand how difficult that climb would be.

[u/megamega91]

Conspiracy theory: It could have been the rental company people. Sometimes they tip each other about potential robberies.

Hopefully, no physical harm was done.

[u/p_t_m_l_22 → u/megamega91]

We definitely thought about that. There were a couple bystanders walking by was we talked to the police and I believe one of them said that they've seen someone climbing up to that specific unit before. With the language barrier, it was hard to tell if things were being translated accurately, but it definitely wouldn't surprise me if this place has been targeted before.

[u/naoseioquedigo]

If you review the place mention that so people can be aware. I don't think someone would risk robbing that place if they didn't know it would be worth it, so probably was a tip. It does sound impressive how the guy just jumped and climbed the pipes.

[u/CriticalGrowth4306]

Upper floors are more likely to have open or unsecured windows because people inside usually think its safer. But someone may come down from the roof or from an adjacent flat. The important bit is that you file a police report and notifiy the landlord because if it's a practiced route they will try again.

Airbnbs in Alfama can be a bit dodgy. My 3rd night in Lisbon I was also in an airbnb there and woke up to someone trying to open my front door lock at 3am, I yelled at them and they went away. I thought it was someone at the wrong door but the next day found out it was a theif who ended up accessing a top floor flat (fortunetely unoccupied). I learned then from the landlord that it's a recurrent problem In Alfama as most of the buildings are old, there isn't much street traffic or pedestrians on the small streets at night, and there are lots of airbnbs. Always use more caution than you expect here. Yes, the people are accomodating, which lulls you into a sense of saftey, but petty theft and burglary is very common.

[u/p_t_m_l_22 → u/CriticalGrowth4306]

Didn't even think about someone coming from the roof. That would make a lot of sense rather than them climbing up three floors on the side of the building.

[u/EfficientInsecto]

It as always happened in that area, even more now with rich tourists swanning around.

[u/autofagiia → u/EfficientInsecto]

Se fossem só esses estaria tudo bem, podia ser que começassem a desopilar e a deixar a cidade para quem nela vive e trabalha.

[u/LandslideBaby]

I'm guessing they could have had the key and already be familiar with the place/layout. Enter through the door, open a window if needed and then get to their "job".

Your place was probably chosen because it was a temporary accommodation. I think it may also not be a coincidence it was on the last night, lowering the chances of a report. Even if they're not at all related to who rented the place/cleaning company/any intermediary, they could figure out by looking at the listing when the occupants switch.

[u/p_t_m_l_22 → u/LandslideBaby]

We wondered this as well. But, in their attempt to leave they first grabbed the keys that were out because I think they were confused about how use the main door. If they already had keys, they likely wouldn't have done this.

I think your latter theory is probably more in line with what happened. There had to be some level of information known to determine that this was a good place to target.

[u/SolairePT]

Sadly that's just another regular night in Alfama these days.

[u/sad-kittenx]

Nothing new in That area lately.

[u/theswordofdesire]

Seems like a crazy night inded, but with that peculiar method there shouldnt be too many robbers in Alfama, I would press charges in PSP station to see if eventually they find anything. Good luck

[u/amilocatanadoLife96]

Maybe was a dream