Hilton Head woman leaves stranger alone in her home. Then her keys vanished — temporarily

A Hilton Head woman who let a stranger into her home on July 5 discovered her keys missing only to have them mysteriously reappear after she contacted deputies days later, according to a Beaufort County Sheriff's Office report filed Monday.

The incident started at 5 a.m. at the Palmetto Commons Condominiums when the victim went outside to feed the neighborhood cats and saw a woman standing there. The woman told the victim she was waiting for a neighbor to come home so she could pick up her car, the report said. They talked for about 15 minutes before the victim invited the woman into her home.

The victim left the woman alone there for about 10 minutes. When she returned, the woman was not in the house. The victim then saw several kitchen drawers had been rummaged through. She noticed the keys, including one to her car, missing the next morning, the report said.

When deputies got in touch with the woman Tuesday morning, she denied taking the keys, the report said.

The deputy told her if she returned them by that afternoon, the victim wouldn't press charges.

Twenty minutes later the woman called the deputy back and said the keys were on the victim's balcony.

But reiterated she hadn't taken them, the report said.

This story was originally published July 11, 2018 at 4:09 PM.