Filmmaker Returns to Santa Monica Home to Find it Ransacked by Squatters, Valuables Stolen

Santa Monica, California – Independent filmmaker Fidel Ruiz Healy returned to his Santa Monica residence on September 16 to discover his home had been ransacked and burglarized by squatters during his absence. Healy, an award-winning cinematographer, had been away for a week and a half on a work trip to New York when the incident occurred. The Santa Monica Police Department is currently investigating the matter.

The first sign of trouble for Healy was an open gate, which he stated is "never unlocked," as he arrived back at his property. This initial observation quickly led to the distressing discovery of his home in disarray. "Immediately walked in and my house was trashed," Healy told KTLA, describing the scene.

Inside, every room had been ransacked, with personal belongings scattered throughout. Evidence suggested the squatters had occupied the home for an extended period, as Healy found bottles of alcohol, knives in his bed, and fresh food items like coffee and donuts with recent receipts. He noted, "From the way it looks to me, somebody must’ve been here many nights, just from the amount of stuff that was taken."

Among the most significant losses for Healy was valuable camera equipment essential for his work, along with hard drives containing years of his creative projects. The intruders also caused substantial structural damage, ripping out copper pipes from beneath the old house. "It’s an old house, a lot of copper pipes, so they just started ripping pipes out of the ground," he explained.

After contacting authorities and securing his property, Healy later learned that a neighbor heard individuals attempting to re-enter his home in the middle of the night. "Whoever was here tried to come back to what I guess they assumed was their place to stay for a little while and realized everything was locked up again," Healy recounted. Friends have since initiated a GoFundMe campaign to assist him in recovering from the ordeal, and Healy plans to install a security system.