Queens DA slaps squatter with 18-count indictment

The squatter day of reckoning is coming to Queens.

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz this week indicted a squatter who sued two Jamaica homeowners in a lengthy back-and-forth over their duplex, the New York Post reported. 

The 18-count indictment of Lance White-Hunt includes charges of second-degree burglary, two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, five counts of first-degree identity theft, attempted grand larceny and more.

A real estate broker for the owners started making trips to the home in February after it was made available to rent, according to the DA. Over a few weeks, the broker allegedly saw realized the locks were changed and saw White-Hunt inside, who told police he had been living in the home since January.

In March, White-Hunt sued the rightful homeowners, Denis Kurlyand and Juliya Fulman, to ensure his legal right to remain in the Lakewood Avenue home. 

Evidence presented in the lawsuit included an application approval letter, a rental lease, mail addressed to White-Hunt and an accomplice and an UberEats receipt showing food was delivered to the house. The homeowners claimed the documentation was all forged.

The lawsuit, brought by White-Hunt and an accomplice, sought to grant them a key to the home or permission to change the locks. It was quickly dismissed by a judge after the lease White-Hunt provided to the court didn’t match one he provided to police.

White-Hunt was arrested on Monday and faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted on the charges in the indictment. His next court date is June 11.

“My office will not allow individuals to capitalize on the confusion surrounding squatters’ rights for their own personal gain,” Katz said in a statement.

Tales of squatters have surged in recent months, and the issue appeared in the state budget. Passed in April, state lawmakers ultimately included a measure that changes a section of state law to explicitly exclude squatters — those who intrude or otherwise enter a property and continue to occupy it without permission — from the definition of a tenant.

Squatters in New York City can claim legal right to remain on a property after only 30 days. The status opens landlords and owners up to a struggle with occupants, and possible civil action. 

— Holden Walter-Warner

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