Latest news with #squatting
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Awkward moment political party backing a pro-squatter candidate gets a brutal taste of its own medicine
Activist Drew Pavlou has infuriated a minor political party, after filming himself pretending to be homeless inside the Victorian Socialists headquarters. Pavlou arrived uninvited at the party's Melbourne office on Tuesday, camera rolling, and claimed he was there to 'squat', echoing a stance by a party's candidate. 'Hello guys, I'm at the Victorian Socialists Office,' he announces in the video. 'They actually support squatting, they support people getting inside buildings and squatting. So I thought I would squat inside the Victorian Socialists HQ.' He then amps up the performance, lying down on the floor and wrapping himself in a sleeping bag. 'I'm homeless and I'm a meth addict and I haven't been able to get housing due to the capitalist system, so I thought I would just crash here for a few nights.' A visibly uncomfortable staff member calmly asks him to stop filming and leave, which he does, just under a minute after arriving, as soon as his cameraman lowers the camera. The stunt follows comments made by Victorian Socialists Senate candidate Jordan van den Lamb, also known online as Purplepingers, who urged people in 2024 to squat in vacant properties. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Drew Pavlou (@drewpavlou) One of his posts was linked to a high-profile incident in April 2025, when a Melbourne woman's home was broken into after the address was shared online. The squatters changed the locks, sold her late father's possessions, and left her with a $70,000 repair bill, a cost her insurer refused to cover. At the time, Pavlou criticised van den Lamb, calling him 'unhinged.' After the stunt, Pavlou posted to social media slamming the Victorian Socialists as hypocrites. 'The Victorian Socialists officially support breaking into homes and squatting so I thought I would take a sleeping bag and pillow and try sleep in their front office for a few nights,' Pavlou wrote. 'They threatened to call the police on me as an unhoused neurodivergent POC. Zero solidarity.' The Victorian Socialists fired back on Wednesday with a scathing statement, accusing Pavlou of exploiting the issue of homelessness for clicks. 'Yesterday we were paid a visit by right-wing social media 'influencer' Drew Pavlou who was cosplaying homelessness in order to generate engagement for his social media pages,' the party said. 'He was asked to leave by one of our young volunteers (no-one threatened to call the police on him as he claimed in his posts about the stunt) and he did so as soon as his cameraman was no longer able to film him, about one minute in total.' They also used the opportunity to distance themselves from the stunt, reminding supporters they take the issue seriously. 'As a party, we take the issue of homelessness very seriously, and have developed a policy plan that would, if implemented, mean people in actual housing emergencies have a chance of finding secure shelter.' Victorian Socialists also said they didn't have a party policy on squatting, but did 'oppose perfectly good housing being left empty long-term without a good reason' 'One of our policies is to seize those empty for 12 months or more for use as public housing,' they wrote. Pavlou hit back on social media, saying he was not politically right wing. 'I am not a right wing social media influencer, I am a social democrat philosopher and intellectual. Read some theory and get back to me you infantile leftists,' he wrote. Victorian Socialists supporters criticised Pavlou for his acts. 'This is behaviour I would expect from a toddler' someone wrote on social media. 'He inadvertently made a statement about what it's like to sleep rough,' said another. Pavlou's followers meanwhile backed his protest. 'Oh so suddenly private property is a thing?? Good on you Drew,' said one follower. 'This is awesome. You forgot their main philosophy which is they only care about things if it doesn't affect them personally. They are only generous with other people's money and property, not their own.' wrote another. Pavlou became known in 2019, after a protest against the Chinese Communist Party saw him suspended from the University of Queensland. He has since remained an outspoken critic of the Chinese and Russian Governments, and like Van Den Lamb, unsuccessfully ran for the Australian Senate in 2022.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Chicago Homeowner Says Squatters Took Over His Property And Demanded $8,000 So He Moved in Too — 'I Knew They Were Not Going to Like That'
Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Marco Velazquez never expected to need backup just to enter his own Chicago home. But after a routine showing turned into a standoff with strangers living inside, he made a decision most homeowners wouldn't even consider: he moved in with them. According to WLS-TV, Velazquez had listed his South Side property for sale. When his realtor arrived with a prospective buyer, the house was already occupied. A woman and a man claimed they had just purchased the home and even showed police what looked like mortgage documents. But Cook County records showed no such mortgage existed. Don't Miss: Accredited investors can —with up to 120% bonus shares—before this Uber-style disruption hits the public markets This Jeff Bezos-backed startup will allow you to . Velazquez says officers told him that due to current state law, they couldn't intervene. The matter would have to be handled in civil court. "I said, 'I'm not going to leave.' Called a couple friends, stayed overnight and I knew they were not going to like that," Velazquez told WLS-TV. He, his wife, and a few friends stayed in the living room. The alleged squatters — identified as Shermaine Powell-Gillard and her boyfriend, Codarro — stayed in one of the bedrooms. Rather than leave, the pair made a demand: $8,000 to vacate the property. Velazquez ended up paying $4,300 in a signed cash-for-keys agreement to get them out — a move common with holdover tenants after an eviction or with former owners in foreclosure. "We didn't want to give them money, but we heard really bad stories about squatters taking over properties for six, eight, 10 months, even a year," Velazquez said. Trending: With Point, you can He says a Chicago detective later informed him that Powell-Gillard was also accused in a similar situation involving another home in the city. In that case, she was arrested and charged with burglary, forgery, obstructing identification, and criminal trespassing. Velazquez is now working with investigators and hopes something will come of his case as well. "I heard stories before about squatters. I never thought it would happen to me," he said. Powell-Gillard, for her part, denied the squatter claims, telling WLS-TV the accusations are "false and unfounded." The station reported that attempts to reach her alleged boyfriend were unsuccessful at the time of publication. While "cash for keys" is more commonly used to encourage tenants to leave after foreclosure or lease disputes, some property owners have turned to it as a faster way to resolve squatter situations without waiting for a court order. In Velazquez's case, the $4,300 payout was a practical move to retake possession of the home he legally owned—without risking months of legal delays. Read Next: Warren Buffett once said, "If you don't find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die." Here's , starting today. This AI-Powered Trading Platform Has 5,000+ Users, 27 Pending Patents, and a $43.97M Valuation — Image: Shutterstock This article Chicago Homeowner Says Squatters Took Over His Property And Demanded $8,000 So He Moved in Too — 'I Knew They Were Not Going to Like That' originally appeared on
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Chicago Homeowner Says Squatters Took Over His Property And Demanded $8,000 So He Moved in Too — 'I Knew They Were Not Going to Like That'
Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Marco Velazquez never expected to need backup just to enter his own Chicago home. But after a routine showing turned into a standoff with strangers living inside, he made a decision most homeowners wouldn't even consider: he moved in with them. According to WLS-TV, Velazquez had listed his South Side property for sale. When his realtor arrived with a prospective buyer, the house was already occupied. A woman and a man claimed they had just purchased the home and even showed police what looked like mortgage documents. But Cook County records showed no such mortgage existed. Don't Miss: Accredited investors can —with up to 120% bonus shares—before this Uber-style disruption hits the public markets This Jeff Bezos-backed startup will allow you to . Velazquez says officers told him that due to current state law, they couldn't intervene. The matter would have to be handled in civil court. "I said, 'I'm not going to leave.' Called a couple friends, stayed overnight and I knew they were not going to like that," Velazquez told WLS-TV. He, his wife, and a few friends stayed in the living room. The alleged squatters — identified as Shermaine Powell-Gillard and her boyfriend, Codarro — stayed in one of the bedrooms. Rather than leave, the pair made a demand: $8,000 to vacate the property. Velazquez ended up paying $4,300 in a signed cash-for-keys agreement to get them out — a move common with holdover tenants after an eviction or with former owners in foreclosure. "We didn't want to give them money, but we heard really bad stories about squatters taking over properties for six, eight, 10 months, even a year," Velazquez said. Trending: With Point, you can He says a Chicago detective later informed him that Powell-Gillard was also accused in a similar situation involving another home in the city. In that case, she was arrested and charged with burglary, forgery, obstructing identification, and criminal trespassing. Velazquez is now working with investigators and hopes something will come of his case as well. "I heard stories before about squatters. I never thought it would happen to me," he said. Powell-Gillard, for her part, denied the squatter claims, telling WLS-TV the accusations are "false and unfounded." The station reported that attempts to reach her alleged boyfriend were unsuccessful at the time of publication. While "cash for keys" is more commonly used to encourage tenants to leave after foreclosure or lease disputes, some property owners have turned to it as a faster way to resolve squatter situations without waiting for a court order. In Velazquez's case, the $4,300 payout was a practical move to retake possession of the home he legally owned—without risking months of legal delays. Read Next: Warren Buffett once said, "If you don't find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die." Here's , starting today. This AI-Powered Trading Platform Has 5,000+ Users, 27 Pending Patents, and a $43.97M Valuation — Image: Shutterstock This article Chicago Homeowner Says Squatters Took Over His Property And Demanded $8,000 So He Moved in Too — 'I Knew They Were Not Going to Like That' originally appeared on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Revealed: How Brits are being kicked out of their holiday homes in Spain by underground network of squatter gangs… and are POWERLESS to stop it
Britons are being kicked out of their holiday homes in Spain after falling prey to 'shameless' squatters who act with impunity thanks to the country's lacklustre laws, MailOnline can reveal. Homeowners this week said they have sold up or are planning to do so after spending years trying to remove illegal occupiers with 'no help' from police. The problem has become so pervasive that the profile of the squatters, once mostly limited to Spaniards and Moroccans, now includes British expats themselves - who have cottoned on to how easy it is to take over homes for months or even years at a time. The process to kick squatters out is mired by red tape and courtroom backlogs, placing a 'traumatic' strain on victims, many of them elderly. One 75-year-old Brit has developed severe anxiety and high blood pressure over her ordeal, while another 84-year-old is battling cancer as he tries to get his home back. 'It's getting worse and worse,' claims Liverpudlian estate agent Paul Stuart, 44, of Marbella-based Palm Estates. 'It's a ticking time bomb, there is so much anger that I fear we are going to see a lot more cases ending in violence. 'Since Covid there's been a perfect storm of surging rents, stagnant wages and lack of new housing; it's caused a noticeable increase in squatting. 'I've had to confront squatters myself and I have been threatened with stabbing twice.' Paul added: 'They are really clever and know how to manipulate the law, it's disgusting and horrible what they do. You feel terrible for these homeowners, most of them have saved all their lives to buy a place here and it's just been ruined. 'I know there are genuine people who fall on hard times and can't pay the rent for a while, but the majority of cases I see are just straight up criminals.' Paul explained how gangs of squatters operate on the Costa del Sol. 'They stake out properties to make sure they are empty, before breaking in and calling a locksmith to change the locks,' he explained, adding that he knows of at least one professional locksmith who is actively working for a squatter gang. He said the network then sells the keys on to a squatter family or thugs who want to use the home as a base of criminal activity - with some often becoming drug dens or brothels. This has been the experience of Emma and Ian Williams, who own a studio in Cala d'Or, Mallorca, which was broken into and occupied last December. Photos shared with MailOnline show how the Williams' clothes and other belongings were thrown into rubbish bags and dumped on the street. The Williams' were informed by concerned neighbours that the squatter moved on within a few weeks, only for a second man to occupy the flat. In the interim, neighbours filmed the disasterous state the flat had been left in, with a washing machine stolen and furniture trashed. Emma said: 'Someone else came and barely stayed, potentially storing drugs, then finally the locks were changed again by a third man who was fresh out of prison and who moved a prostitute in. She was heard having sex by our neighbours. 'The police have attended to every squatter and haven't done anything… we have flown to Spain and gone to their offices and still nothing happens. 'The squatters have illegally tampered with the electricity and water supply, and again, the police don't do anything about it.' She added: 'The same person has recently broken into a villa and made a fake tenancy agreement and it looks like they have moved prostitutes over there as it's bigger. 'Our solicitor says we can take the squatter to court but after the day of the court order another squatter could break in and we would have to start the whole process again. 'It's a vicious circle and no one wants to help.' Scottish homeowner Kathy Philip, 75, has been through the wringer after her tenant has refused to leave her two-bedroom apartment in Estepona, on the Costa del Sol, since he stopped paying rent in April 2024, owing them thousands. Her daughter Laura Wilson told MailOnline this week that her mother has developed anxiety and high-blood pressure, placing her at an increased risk of having a stroke. Kathy had been renting the property to an English estate agent at a bargain price of just €650 per month (similar properties could easily fetch three times as much). But following the death of her husband from Parkinson's in January 2023, Kathy decided she wanted to have the home they had shared so many memories in back to herself. They gave the tenant a generous six months' notice, but when Laura and her sister flew out for the handover last April, they found he had changed the locks and installed security cameras. 'He is running his business from the flat, my mum's address is on his real estate website,' said an incredulous Laura, who works as a teacher. 'Meanwhile we are still paying the electricity bills and community fees, amounting to thousands each year.' She said she is 'trying to do everything by the book' but that the lack of movements or updates from the courts is 'painful'. Her mother tried to go to the police but they essentially told her there was 'nothing they could do.' Laura added: 'We just get told to keep waiting, we feel totally powerless. My mum won't go back now, it's had real health implications for her. 'We want to sell the flat, that's it now. My mum is 75, we're keen to look after her like we promised our dad we would, and this has just been horrific for her, it's given her anxiety and she couldn't sleep for weeks. 'Her doctor said she had high blood pressure and an increased risk of having a stroke. 'We just have to hope something is eventually going to happen but we still haven't been given a court date.' In Spain, there are two types of squatters; an 'okupa', who has broken into a property with the sole purpose of occupying it, and an 'inquiokupa', who is a tenant that has stopped paying the rent and refuses to leave. When a tenant stops paying, landlords must seek an eviction order through the courts, which can take months, a year or even longer. However, there are many 'tricks' used to delay the process further, including the squatters having themselves declared 'vulnerable' by the local authorities - granting them extra time. In April this year, a new law came into effect which says 'okupas' who have broken into homes can be removed via an express eviction order within 15 days. However, squatters are creating fake rental contracts bearing the real names of the property owners - which they obtain by rummaging through trash or letterboxes. They tell the police they are tenants and have a right to stay, kicking the can down the road. The tenant had been paying rent to Susan's father, but stopped when he died in January and the apartment was left to Susan. Pictured: The exterior of Susan's home It's a legal landmine that would prove overwhelming even for the typical Spaniard, let alone an elderly Brit who can only spend a few months in the country at a time. Maureen Findell, 76, has just sold her two-bedroom apartment in Punta Prima, on the Costa Blanca, after squatters 'completely ruined' the home for her and her family. The grandmother, from London, told MailOnline she was first informed by her neighbour last December that people were in her flat, using a set of keys to come and go. 'They told them they had rented it, they had a fake rental contract with the name of another owner in the building,' she said. 'They broke in via the back doors and had been living there for months or even longer before people realised they were squatters.' Maureen hadn't been able to fly out to the home for some time as she was caring for her sick sister back in the UK. 'They must have realised mine was empty,' she said. 'I know three other properties had squatters, there are two still living there and different families come and go and they don't seem to be able to get rid of them. 'The police don't give a monkeys, and the squatters are intimidating people and often have aggressive dogs.' Given the lack of faith in the system, Maureen said her 'incredible' neighbours, mostly Brits, decided to stand outside the property day and night, waiting for the so-called 'sitter' to leave. The sitter is the person used by the squatter gangs to 'reserve' a home until one of their families move in. Often, gangs sell the keys of occupied homes to other squatters, in what has become a lucrative business in areas where properties are left empty for months at a time. As previously revealed by MailOnline, the squatters have allegedly failed to pay more than €50,000 in rent for the three-bedroom house in Mijas, since 2020 Unfortunately, it means British-owned flats or villas in holiday hotspots are among the top targets, alongside bank repos. Maureen added: 'I was one of the lucky ones, eventually they realised they could not move in another family so they left. 'But they left the place in such a mess and the whole ordeal threw me so much that I couldn't bring myself to go back there, I sold it because I couldn't cope with it.' Maureen had bought the home off plan more than 20 years ago. She said: 'The whole family used to go there, it was lovely, but this just spoiled it. 'These are not vulnerable, homeless people, these are mafia type people, they go around stealing. 'If it was genuine homeless people I could kind of understand it, but they're not.' Hundreds of kilometres away on the Costa del Sol, Susan Travers, 57, from Glasgow, is owed thousands of euros in rent. Her two-bedroom, €220,000 flat in Manilva was squatted at the start of this year. The tenant had been paying rent to Susan's father, but stopped when he died in January and the apartment was left to Susan. Susan told MailOnline how the woman, who was working for a well-known estate agency, has only recently abandoned the home after refusing to pay for over six months. 'I was emailing and texting and calling her and she just ignored me,' Susan added. 'When I did get her on the phone she was quite aggressive and told me there was nothing I could do, saying I can't get her out and "I know my rights" and all this. 'I even tried to arrange for her to pay what she owed in instalments but she was not interested. 'Then one day she just vanished without warning and we were able to get in and change the locks back.' Susan is now going through the courts to get what she is owed in rent, while the squatter is believed to have taken over another home nearby. 'I was just shocked that she was an estate agent and doing this,' added Susan. Suffering a far worse fate is fellow British victim Kenneth Jobe, 84, who has been left exhausted after trying to remove squatters from his Costa del Sol home for over five years. As previously revealed by MailOnline, the squatters have allegedly failed to pay more than €50,000 in rent for the three-bedroom house in Mijas, since 2020. In an update this week, Kenneth's son said his father has been diagnosed with cancer after the disease was detected in his liver. The shocking news has dealt a crushing blow to the family, who are now more desperate than ever to win their home back. 'We're not giving up,' his son told MailOnline, 'We're in court in September where the judge will rule on whether or not the squatters can be declared vulnerable, and we are optimistic of winning and getting an eviction date. 'But it's disgusting, my dad got diagnosed with cancer last week. He's having a biopsy right now in hospital, and he can't even go to his own house in Spain, it's breathtaking, he wants to live out there.' He added: 'The system is broken, especially for expats, if you're spanish it moves along a lot quicker.' Brits who plan to leave their home in Spain empty for any period of time are advised to install good quality security cameras and an alarm. If squatters are filmed on CCTV breaking into your home, and an alarm notifies police immediately, there will be a much stronger case for an immediate eviction.
Daily Mail
12-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Bombshell twist in Yahoo Serious row revealed - after he's accused of SQUATTING in dementia sufferer's beachside home and running up a $70,000 bill
Aussie Hollywood comedy icon Yahoo Serious is just days away from being evicted from an elderly dementia patient's home where he's been allegedly squatting for months. Serious is said to be living illegally with his Jack Russell terrier in the multi-million dollar home of Charles Phillip Porter, who is in his 90s and now in a nursing home. The Young Epstein star was spotted at the plush Palm Beach home, in Sydney 's wealthy northern beaches, on Tuesday but faces being kicked out within weeks. He has been ordered to exit the multi-storey house on Barrenjoey Road by August 4 but showed no sign of being willing to leave when Daily Mail Australia spoke to him. He denied squatting in the home, despite a tribunal hearing giving him the deadline to vacate, and insisted: 'You're getting it all wrong.' But Serious declined to answer further questions about his future plans, and if he would move out or where he would go. Mr Porter's lifelong friend Margie Charlton this week told Daily Mail Australia the former star has cost the homeowner $70,000 in nursing home fees because of his refusal to move out. She has had Mr Porter's power of attorney for the last 14 years and said she now has to sell the home to pay for the mounting nursing home bill. 'I owe $70,000 in nursing home fees because I can't sell the f***ing house because he won't move out,' Ms Charlton said. The amount grows at an alarming rate of around $6,500 per month, she said. In March, the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal heard Serious used to live in the granny flat beneath the ramshackle property, which stands among the mansions overlooking picturesque Pittwater. The tribunal was told the owner had allowed Serious to move into the granny flat, as the former screen star was living rough in his ageing BMW sedan, but he moved into the main house when Mr Porter was put into care. On April 24, the tribunal initially gave Mr Serious six weeks to move out, Ms Charlton told Daily Mail Australia. 'But his lawyer said he needed 12 weeks because he's a sick man with lymphoma,' she said. Ms Charlton alleges that despite appearing fragile at the tribunal hearing, Serious was seen playing Anzac Day Two-Up at Newport Bowling Club the following day. 'It was actually me who was feeling sick from it all,' she said. Serious - and his wild haircut at the time - became suddenly famous when he starred in 1988's Young Einstein movie and then 1993's Reckless Kelly. But he later fell on hard times and was taken in by Mr Porter and Ms Charlton several years ago. He was recently seen looking very gaunt, amid concerns for his health. Serious told the tribunal he should be allowed to remain in the home because he was Mr Porter's carer, which Ms Charlton strongly disputes. 'Phillip - we call him Phillip, not Charles, is a family friend, he has been for years and years,' she said. 'He's never been married, never had children, so he made me power of attorney and trustee. 'He was getting old and getting dementia, and was having trouble looking after himself, so I was doing all his cooking. 'It wasn't like Yahoo was his carer. He wasn't bathing him or dressing him. I was washing his clothes, we had a cleaner coming in. 'He was just there to listen out for him, really.' Ms Charlton said Serious moved in after she and Mr Porter, out for a morning swim in Palm Beach, found the fallen star living out of his car. 'We didn't want to put Phillip in a nursing home, he wasn't ready yet, and he had a flat underneath his house,' she added. 'So I said to Yahoo, "Look, you're obviously living out of your car. We've got a place for you to stay if you would just keep an eye on Phillip". 'It was just somebody to make sure he was OK. 'The deal was he could stay there, but when I said to move out, he had to move out so we could sell the place... and when the time came, he just wouldn't.' It's alleged Serious then moved from the granny flat to the upstairs home when Mr Porter went into his nursing home and was using Mr Porter's furniture. 'We gave him an eviction notice and he just threw it over his shoulder,' she said. 'We told him we need to sell the property to pay the fees, and that's when he turned around and said, "Nah, sorry, not happening". 'It's just a nightmare.' In her application filed to NCAT, Ms Charlton said Mr Porter's ongoing care is at risk if the property is unable to be sold. 'Due to his diagnosis of dementia, Mr Porter has been placed in a nursing home, and I hold power of attorney for his affairs,' she wrote. 'The Public Trustee has instructed me to sell the property in order to fund Mr Porter's ongoing care. 'Failure to do so will result in his removal from his current care facility.' Serious denied he was squatting in the home when he spoke to Daily Mail Australia in March. 'I don't do things that are illegal and I never have,' he said. 'The [professional] work I have done has proved that. 'When you have done something significant in your life then you become an easy target to sell papers.' At the time, Serious - born Greg Pead - claimed he was not aware of any eviction or impending tribunal. 'I am not aware of anything, but the truth always comes out,' he added. 'I'm just a human who lives with the legacy of being defamed.' As well as a Keep Out warning sign in the front door window, the dilapidated cottage also has a large chest blocking the entrance of the home. Serious insisted: 'There are a lot of problems with that house.' After a few unsuccessful attempts to restart his career, he was previously evicted from an Avalon rental property in 2020 for failing to pay his rent. Another NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal hearing at the time ordered him to pay his landlords $15,000 and vacate the property. His production company, Serious Productions Pty Ltd, had begun renting the property in March 2017 for $1,350 per week.
