A neighbourhood in Los Angeles has been left baffled after being plagued by dozens of unwanted Uber Eats deliveries for months.
Free takeaways might seem like a dream but residents of Highland Park are sick and tired of McDonald's fries, Starbucks drinks and KFC turning up on their doorsteps free of charge.
The bizarre incident started back in February when over the course of a few weeks unsolicited food orders started piling up on the resident's doorsteps, the Los Angeles Times reported.
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Some received over 10 deliveries, one person got around 30 and another saw a whopping 40 unwanted orders arriving for them.
The mystery meals have all been paid for, with some deliveries even including a tip for the driver.
Among the orders were one of a single matcha tea latte complete with a mocha drizzle and another consisting of four McDonald's McGriddles, two chicken and two sausage.
But others were far more simple, including single children's milk cartons and bottles of water.
“We’ve had 3 deliveries … of a single order of McDonald’s fries," resident Alison Perrine complained.
While some locals found the free food funny at first, the entire neighbourhood is becoming increasingly creeped out after failing to identify the culprit behind the orders.
“When you first tell people, they all go, ‘Oh, it’s a prank,’” said neighbour Kelsey McManus, “But it seems so much more systemic than that.”
Richie Kulchar was left so infuriated by the constant deliveries he resorted to putting up a sign on his door instructing drivers to "NOT LEAVE ANY ORDERS!"
“Every day it’s one milk in a bag,” said Richie, who lives on Avenue 50 near Range View, where most of the deliveries are turning up.
He added: "I’m a pro at this now, I’m checking my credit cards, my Uber Eats account — none of it is showing up on there."
"Now, I’m just annoyed with Uber Eats. I throw it away, which is a bummer because I really don’t like wasting an unopened milk. But what am I going to do, stock it in my fridge?”
In March the orders came to a sudden stop but last month they started showing up again, prompting locals to cast a wide net of theories about the unnerving situation.
The first theory to emerge was that it was all down to a simple prank by local college students but Richie isn't convinced.
“That’s the most boring-ass prank that a college student could pull,” he said.
Another theory also placed the blame on college students, speculating it was part of an experiment carried out by a psychology class.
Some reckon a criminal gang could be behind them all — believing the orders may be used to case houses of wealthy residents.
But residents believe the most convincing theory is that the culprits are criminals attempting to test out stolen credit cards by using Uber Eats to make small charges on them.
Right now the mystery is still unsolved but Uber Eats said the latter theory was a possibility they're investigating as they look into the situation, claiming they had banned some accounts from the platform.
“The reports of unsolicited deliveries are concerning,” a spokesperson said. “We … will not hesitate to take additional action if the unsolicited orders continue.”
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