Gardener Suspected Their New Neighbor Of Stealing Their Vegetables, So Their Baseless Accusations Turned Into A Bitter Conflict
by Benjamin Cottrell
Trusting new neighbors may be a challenge, but there’s a clear line between caution and a witch hunt. Unfortunately, this story falls into the latter.
When a gardener accused their new neighbor of stealing vegetables, it sparked a heated confrontation fueled by strong emotions but lacking solid evidence.
Read on for the full story!
AITA for confronting my neighbor who is obviously stealing produce from my garden?
This spring, a young woman — let’s call her “Kristin” — moved into the house next door to me.
She owns some sort of catering business for weddings and runs an Instagram account about food.
We live in a semi-remote area about 15 minutes outside of a small town.
This homeowner is quite passionate about their garden and is quite protective of it.
During the pandemic, I got very into gardening and love my thriving vegetable and herb garden.
I tend to it very carefully, and I love that I can feed my husband and kids with food I have grown.
But soon they noticed something strange.
This summer, produce has begun disappearing.
Some of my tomatoes, squash, eggplants, and herbs have vanished overnight.
I see no signs of animals chewing them.
No vegetables disappeared from my garden last summer.
Obviously, someone is taking them.
So naturally, their suspicion turns to their newest neighbor.
Kristin is the nearest house to mine — the other nearest homes are a bit of a walk down the road, and she is right next door.
I find it very suspicious that the thefts began right after she moved in.
I even checked her Instagram and saw her posting photos of food this very week featuring the exact produce that’s gone missing from my garden —tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, and herbs.
I confronted her about this yesterday evening, and she became very, very defensive.
Kristin is quick with several logical explanations for why she has these vegetables.
She said I was crazy and that she had no reason to steal from me since there is a farmer’s market right down the road.
She also claimed she grows her own windowsill herbs and has a supplier for her business.
She even had the audacity to brag about how much money she makes, saying that her business brings in good money and that she would have no need to steal.
But this gardener still isn’t sold.
From her defensiveness and this level of bragging, it seems obvious to me that she is lying.
Things got ugly, and she slammed her door in my face, which, to me, seems like further proof of guilt.
AITA? Should I have gone about this differently?
She is clearly stealing from me and clearly lying about it.
To say this gardener let their suspicion get the best of them would be a bit of an understatement.
Reddit is sure to have some strong opinions about this.
Making wild accusations without any proof? Rookie mistake.
This commenter isn’t sure their relationship can come back after this, but an apology would probably be a good start.
Even if this new neighbor somehow is the culprit, keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
It’s the 21st century: Get a camera!
This gardener’s argument has more passion than proof.
If you liked that story, read this one about grandparents who set up a college fund for their grandkid because his parents won’t, but then his parents want to use the money to cover sibling’s medical expenses.
Categories: STORIES
Tags: · accusations, aita, false accusations, new neighbors, picture, reddit, rude people, stealing, suspicious people, top

Sign up to get our BEST stories of the week straight to your inbox.