Florida Officials Warn About Squatting After ‘Migrant Influencer’ Encouraged Others To Invade Unoccupied Homes

Becoming Squatters, How Life Can Suddenly Change — (Photo : Jasper Juinen/Getty Images) SEVILLE, SPAIN - JUNE 01: Thirty-three year old Vanessa Arias Fernandez (L), who were evicted from her home together with her family, sits in the living room with her children, seven-year-old Yeray and her five-year-old twins Kiomara and Tatiana, lit by the yellow street lights, at her apartment, which is part of a complex occupied by the Corrala Utopia community on June 1, 2013 in Seville, Spain.In 2010 Spanish banks foreclosed more than 100,000 households which contributed to the already large number of empty houses. With as many as one million properties unsold, victims of Spain's financial crisis, struggling to keep a roof over their head due to high levels of unemployment and severe cuts to social welfare, have turned to squatting in the empty buildings. The Corrala Utopia is a community, on a steadily growing list of communities all over Spain, living in squatted buildings. In this case the building stood empty for three years before the squatters moved in almost a year ago. The community houses a total of 36 families including almost 40 children. The families are cut off from water and electricity and live with an uncertain future and the fear of being evicted soon again. For the first time in history over 6 million Spaniards are jobless in Spain, the euro zone's fourth-biggest economy.

Florida officials are now warning against a possible increase in squatting incidents after a so-called "migrant influencer" posted a video encouraging others to invade unoccupied homes.

The video is from Leonel Moreno, an undocumented Venezuelan immigrant who has become a "migrant influencer" on TikTok. In one video, Moreno encouraged "fellow Venezuelans" to squat in unoccupied homes across the US.

"If a house is not inhibited, we can seize it," Moreno said in the now-deleted TikTok clip, per the New York Post.

After the video was posted, the Martin County Sheriff's Office near Palm Beach, Florida, issued a warning about the possible increases in activity from squatters.

"A recent viral instructional video created by an illegal Venezuelan immigrant advising others how to break into unoccupied homes in the United States, solely to gain legal rights and take up occupancy, is sparking fear among Florida residents who leave their homes for seasonal purposes, extended trips, or because their home is for sale or for rent and sits temporarily unoccupied," the sheriff's office posted on Facebook.

"We do anticipate that this viral instructional video will prompt attempts by squatters to try this here. Please make your residents aware of this squatter trend and advise them to remain alert. Homeowners must work together to make sure that no one is victimized by this, or any other crime," they added.

Who Is Leonel Moreno?

Moreno is a Venezuelan national who illegally crossed the southern border in April 2022. He was later enrolled in the Alternatives to Detention program, which is an initiative that allows federal authorities to track migrants via ankle monitors.

Moreno was later released into the country on parole due to a lack of space in the detention facilities. He was reported to be living in Columbus, Ohio. His listed point of contact, however, was Catholic Charities in Miami.

Moreno was set to attend immigration court in November 2022 but failed to appear in person. He is now listed as an "absconder" from the program, The Post reported, citing internal documents from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Moreno's TikTok profile appears to have been deleted after receiving backlash from the squatting video. However, he still maintains an Instagram account.