Southern Cannibal's Scary Stories

Episode 626: 5 TRUE Creepy Neighbor Horror Stories

Release Date: December 9, 2025
Host: Southern Cannibal
Theme:
This episode presents five chilling, true stories of deeply disturbing—and sometimes outright dangerous—encounters with neighbors. All stories are first-hand listener or online submissions, maintaining the raw, suspenseful tone that fans of Southern Cannibal have come to expect. From overt criminal behavior to invasive and unsettling acts, these tales remind listeners just how little we may truly know about those living next door.

1. The Watchful Neighbor ("Jim")

[00:05–07:38]

• Setting: Winter 2013, Detroit. A young petite female military member moves into a gated community after prior break-ins.

• Events:

  • After her move, the main storyteller finds herself alone in her building due to neighbors moving out.

  • She encounters Jim, a new neighbor, who unnervingly reveals he’s been tracking her work schedule.

    "I've noticed your work schedule is different. You used to come home every two days, now it's like every other day. Is that going to be the new normal for you?" — Jim [03:37]

  • Jim asks intrusive questions and invites her over, which she politely refuses, feeling uneasy.

  • Later, after napping, she wakes to aggressive knocking at her door around 5 pm. Her friend Tom arrives soon after, and together they discover the bulb by her door was unscrewed, leaving the exterior in darkness.

  • The incident reminds her of a "Criminal Minds" episode where a killer unscrews a victim’s outdoor light—a chilling parallel she only realizes weeks later.

• Impact: The OP describes the rising paranoia and anxiety, concluding:

  "After that, I didn’t feel comfortable in my apartment and couldn’t wait to leave." [07:19]

2. The Kitten and the Murderer

[08:37–10:12]

• Setting: Early years of marriage for the storyteller and her husband.

• Events:

  • The couple becomes friendly with a neighbor, even hanging out and playing pool.

  • A small black kitten wanders into the yard. Minutes later, the neighbor kills the kitten with a rock—though the couple manages to save its life at the vet; the kitten, Midnight, survives with one eye.

  • Years later, the couple learns this same neighbor stabbed a roommate to death on a work trip.

    "It is scary to believe someone like this lived right beside us and had been in our home and we had been in his." [09:27]

• Aftermath: After the kitten incident, they cut ties. The experience is a chilling reflection on how little we may know about our neighbors.

3. The Neighbor’s Son, the Intruder

[10:12–15:38]

• Setting: 1984; a single mother and her three children move into an old, roach-infested house.

• Events:

  • The mother occasionally sees the “creepy son” next door peering into windows, sometimes waking to find him in her bedroom, and possibly being drugged unknowingly.

  • A series of subtle but disturbing discoveries—cigarette butts in the upstairs bathroom, unexplained noises, and men’s coughing in the night—mount in menace.

  • One night, the mother’s detective friend discovers that the intruder has been repeatedly entering through an unsecured window, climbing the roof to get in—and had likely been inside while the children slept.

    "The scariest moment of my life was when we were creeping down the stairs in the pitch black ... The perfect place for someone to hide." [13:43]

• Resolution: The family moves out immediately. Later, they learn the neighbor’s son is arrested for rape and attempted murder.

  "I still wonder what might have happened if I had turned on that bathroom light, if my mom didn’t lock the stairway door, or if we didn’t leave the house when we did." [15:26]

4. The Nazi Singing Neighbor

[16:22–22:24]

• Setting: 2016, a young couple in a capital city manages to rent an apartment in the city center.

• Events:

  • The couple is harassed by a neighbor, a former child actor, who screams Nazi songs and more, mostly at night.

  • He accuses them of spying on him, grows aggressive, and tries to enter their apartment. Police become aware, but the behavior escalates—strange visitors, loud howling, dangerous outbursts.

  • Twice, fires nearly break out in his apartment, eventually leading to a blaze threatening the whole building. The neighbor is missing after setting the fire but returns, acting as if nothing happened.

    "He had actually started the fire and then left his apartment, apparently trying to burn down the whole building with all of the neighbors asleep." [21:46]

• Aftermath: He is later charged with arson but evades court. The couple quickly moves out, later discovering he still lives in the building with an infamous reputation.

5. “Creeper Joe”

[23:28–28:13]

• Setting: Seven years prior for the storyteller, around the end of her high school years.

• Events:

  • The neighbor, Joe, is a reclusive middle-aged man living with his mother.

  • Suspicious behaviors escalate: Joe gazes at neighborhood kids; eventually tells the storyteller’s father, “he likes little boys,” prompting a police investigation that uncovers child porn.

  • He seems to avoid the family after that, and months later is found dead of a heart attack—discovered only days later when his elderly mother notices he hasn’t come out for food.

  • Oddly, Joe’s mother had a significant life insurance policy on him, arousing lasting neighborhood suspicion.

    "Nothing would have seemed weird if it wasn't for the random life insurance on a guy whose biggest posed risk was losing the remote." [27:55]

• Aftermath: While not a direct threat to the storyteller, the revelation and the neighbor’s lifestyle were haunting.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• The feeling of constant surveillance:

  "So my spidey Chris Hansen senses kick in..." — Original Poster on suspecting neighbor’s intentions [03:47]

• Realization of imminent danger:

  "We needed to get out of this house right away." — Detective, as recounted by the OP on the intruder [14:46]

• On living close to real evil:

  "It is scary to believe someone like this lived right beside us." [09:27]

• Describing a neighbor’s attempts to burn the building:

  "He was later on charged with arson, but managed to run away and didn't show up in court." [21:52]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Creepy Military Neighbor ("Jim") – [00:05–07:38]
• Kitten-Killing Neighbor Turned Murderer – [08:37–10:12]
• Intruder Neighbor’s Son – [10:12–15:38]
• Nazi Song Screaming Neighbor & Arson – [16:22–22:24]
• Creeper Joe & Neighborhood Suspicion – [23:28–28:13]

Episode Tone

Reflective, tense, and sometimes incredulous, with each firsthand account told in a relatable, cautious, yet deeply unnerving manner. Southern Cannibal’s style keeps the stories grounded and personal, amplifying the sense of real-life peril and lingering fear each neighbor instilled.

Perfect for listeners seeking verified, real-life horror stories that could happen to anyone—especially those who wonder what secrets might be hiding behind their neighbor’s doors.