The identity of serial litterers who spent months blighting a housing estate with half-eaten chocolates was discovered to be greedy squirrels.
Locals living in Ellesmere Port, in Cheshire, England, became gripped by the question of ‘whodunnit’ after candy wrappers kept appearing.
The saga—dubbed ‘Wafergate’—was discussed daily on the neighborhood’s WhatsApp group, with theories and accusations spreading through the community.
A resident of the close-knit community built an ex-Air Force base first noticed the wrappers back in September.
“I was walking my children and suddenly noticed there’s loads of Blue Riband wrappers everywhere,” said Fiona Downes.
“I posted a picture on our WhatsApp group, asking people to please pick up their wrappers if they’ve been eating chocolate bars.”
But no one fessed up and, over the following months, more wrappers and half-eaten chocolate bars continued to appear.
“It became a big topic among residents. Everyone was desperate to uncover the culprit. It was a big mystery.
People were getting annoyed, thinking someone was just littering. While others thought maybe it was the garbage collecting crew.
The mystery was finally solved after a local who works in a nearby RV storage facility spotted dozens of Blue Ribands inside a dumpster in November.
Then all became clear when another resident, Natalie Clarke, snapped pictures of squirrels scurrying up a tree—with a chocolate in its mouth.
“Squirrels had clearly been in there and stolen them all. It only took three months to work out!”
“We all got a bit obsessed and were trying to hunt people down,” recalled Natalie.
“We were trying to work out who buys wafers from Aldi before we realized that squirrels were doing it.
DID YOU KNOW? Squirrels Have Very Different Personality Traits – Just Like Humans
“When I saw them I thought ‘Oh my God I’ve finally found proof’.
“The sheer volume of the bars honestly, they must be going through 100 of them a week.”
“We’re not sure why the chocolate was (dumped). Maybe it was an out-of-date box.”
Fiona concedes the whole saga has been “a good bit of fun.”
“I’d like to know how a squirrel opens a chocolate bar. They probably won’t be able to walk now due to putting on so much weight.”
CUTENESS OVERLOAD: Man Cajoles His 17 Dachshunds into Christmas Sweaters So They Can Pose for Best Family Photo in History
“It’s become a huge joke with everyone and we’ve all had a good laugh.
“They have ramped it up even more since we found out, every day I’m picking up wrappers out of rose bushes,” says Fiona. “It’s been hilarious working it out.”
SHARE a GOOD LAUGH With Friends and Squirrel Lovers on Social Media…