DA’s office fails to get into $1M NYC squatter home as another resident emerges and declares ‘I’m renting’
NY Post
Investigators from the Queens District Attorney’s Office were turned away at a $1 million Flushing home taken over by squatters Thursday — as another tenant claimed he was duped into subletting.
“I’m not a squatter, I’m renting,” said the man, who declined to give his name. “I paid rent. I’m not a squatter. Everyone in there right now is paying rent. Yes, to the same landlord. It is no good.
“People are taking pictures of us and yelling at us,” he said. “We are all paying rent. Everyone in there is paying rent. I don’t want to live with the squatter.”
He emerged from the house on 160th Street just 20 minutes after two DA investigators repeatedly knocked on the door and tried to get in but were left out in the cold — and finally gave up.
The Post reported Wednesday that another subletter, Kevin Ballasty, acknowledged that he was scammed into paying $1,500 to a squatter identified as “Jay,” with a supposed realtor named David Dubon getting a $1,000 fee for allegedly brokering the deal.
“There’s nothing in my right mind that could lead me to believe there was going to be a problem like this,” Ballasty said. “I was brought in through a real estate. This is a great find, thank you very much. And I love the place, I love the neighborhood. But I guess I paid $3,500 to the landlord, Jay.”
