‘Hateful’ squatters ‘sabotage’ NYC home with rotting fish and nails in sofa: landlord
A pair of “hateful” squatters who lived in a Queens home rent-free for nearly four years finally left — but not before trashing the unit and filling it with dangerous and disgusting booby traps.
They left raw meat in a trash bag and an unplugged fridge full of uncooked salmon, leaving the place reeking of rotting food, landlord Vanie Mangal said.
The rogue renters also bashed in the kitchen sink, and ripped out circuit breakers from the electric box and a new thermostat from the wall, she claimed.
But the coup de grace was a nail allegedly inserted into a ratty couch cushion that could have seriously injured Mangal, 33, or anyone who tried to sit on the sofa in the two-story home on 115th Street in South Ozone Park.
“It comes down to them just being hateful people,” the frustrated owner said of alleged deadbeat tenants Rosanna Busgith and Philip Garnett, who left Jan. 17, just a day before a city marshal was set to boot them.
“You would think that they would feel some type of remorse … but no, they would do things like this just to try to hurt us.”
In addition to being out at least $48,800 in unpaid rent, per court papers, Mangal, who works as an emergency room physician assistant, estimated the repairs will take months and cost thousands.
“It’s bittersweet. They’re out, but also it’s not the end,” she said.
Mangal’s housing horror story began in October 2019, when her 72-year-old mother, Ahutey Mangal, rented the first-floor unit to Busgith and Garnett for $1,600 a month.
But when COVID struck in March 2020 and pandemic-era protections, including the federal eviction moratorium, kicked in, the couple paid just $800 — then nothing after, according to court records.
Mangal took them to Queens housing court that December.
What you need to know about squatters in New York:
What are squatter’s rights in New York?
Squatters in New York state can claim a legal right to remain on a property without the owner’s permission after 10 years of living there. However, in New York City, a person only needs to be on the property for 30 days to claim squatter’s rights.
Why is it so hard to get rid of a squatter?
Squatters are allowed a wide range of rights once they have established legal occupancy, making it difficult to evict them.
How does someone become a squatter?
Some of the scenarios in which a person becomes a squatter include: a tenant refusing to pay rent, a relative of a former owner refusing to leave the property or even a stranger who entered the property and never left.
According to Manhattan-based law firm Nadel & Ciarlo, squatters must have a reasonable basis for claiming the property belongs to them and must treat the home as if they were an owner — such as doing yard work or making repairs.
How can a property owner get rid of a squatter?
A property owner must first send a 10-day eviction notice and then file a court complaint if the order is ignored. If approved by a judge, the owner can get a summons and have a sheriff evict the squatter.
Why does the law provide squatters with rights?
The law was designed to help prevent long-term tenants from getting evicted. New York City’s law was partially made in response to vacant and abandoned buildings that were becoming a blight on the city.
How can property owners protect themselves from squatters?
Owners should avoid keeping any properties vacant for an extended period of time. They should also make sure the building is secure, has adequate lighting and has surveillance cameras installed.
If a squatter does appear, owners should notify the police quickly before squatter’s rights are established.
Mangal said she took on a second job working at COVID clinics to make up for the lost rent.
“I was literally supporting myself, I was helping my mom and I was supporting this freeloading family,” she said.
This isn’t the first housing headache caused by the couple.
In June 2019, another Queens landlord attempted to evict the pair from a South Richmond Hill home and collect five months’ rent totaling $4,500, court records show.
Despite the city’s housing crisis, Mangal’s years-long legal saga to kick out the miscreants has killed any desire to rent her property again, as has housing activists’ push for tenant-friendly legislation like “Good Cause” eviction protections.
“I feel bad that there’s all these people out there that want a place to live or need a place to live, but I can’t trust anybody,” she said. “And I can’t trust that the law is going to be on my side if this were to happen again.”
Garnett insisted that he and Busgith left the rental unit “in good faith” but said the space was “in a bad state.”
“She said she wanted the apartment, we left the apartment and that’s it,” he said, adding he had no idea about the nail inserted in the couch or the rotting meat left behind.
Busgith denied causing any damage before leaving the space, lashing out at Mangal as a “schemer” who is “running a fraud.”
“We were nothing but nice to them,” she said, adding, “We didn’t wreck nothing.”
