A pair of alleged squatters have recently sued the rightful owners of a $930,000 investment home that they took over, according to a report.
Juliya Fulman and her husband Denis Kurlyand were set to begin securing tenants for their Lakeside Avenue investment property when their real-estate broker, Ejona Bardhi, informed them that the locks had been changed.
After determining the lock change was not authorized, Bardhi returned to the property and met the squatters, who were identified as Lance Hunt, Sr., and Rondie L. Francis, as reported by the Daily Mail. Police were called to the scene and removed the squatters from the property after they were unable to provide proof that they had stayed there since January, as they claimed.
However, the squatters returned to the property the next day, armed with what they claimed was a lease agreement signed by Bardhi. Fulman and Kurlyand later presented police officers with ownership documents and timestamped videos as evidence. This led the officers to escort the men from the property and the owners to change the lock, the couple told the New York Post.
Ten days after, Bardhi was served with court papers notifying her that she, the couple, and the real estate firm handling the listing were being sued by the squatters. The documents also noted that the squatters were granted an emergency lockout in Queens Civil Court. A court date is scheduled for April 5. The judge also advised the couple against letting their tenants move into the property, saying doing so could further complicate the matter.
NYC's Squatting Incidents
The lawsuit is the latest in a string of squatting incidents in New York City in recent months. In early March, police arrested homeowner Adele Andaloro after she changed the locks on the $1 million home she inherited from her parents in Flushing, Queens. A squatter who took over her home is now subletting space in the house.
In February, former handyman Brett Flores took over a Queens couple's $2 million dream home and refused to leave. Flores, who was hired by the former homeowner as his caretaker, said he received a "license" from the now-deceased former owner to stay in the house.
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