After a Queens homeowner was arrested for trying to get rid of a group of squatters staying on her property earlier this week, vigilantes in the neighborhood decided to help and were partially successful.
After the drama that she endured for a month while trying to sell her home, Adele Andaloro fled town with her husband and son.
“We are leaving. We are getting out-of-town,” she said.
Meanwhile, two upstanding citizens chose to help Andaloro, who was arrested earlier this week after changing the locks to keep the squatters from re-entering.
🚨BREAKING: A woman gets arrested for removing squatters out of her $1,000,000 house in Queens, NY.
Adel Andaloro inherited her family's home in Flushing, Queens after her parents passed away and was in the process of selling it when she noticed that someone illegally moved in.… pic.twitter.com/bMqitIXlrk
— I Meme Therefore I Am 🇺🇸 (@ImMeme0) March 19, 2024
“We are looking to get this guy out,” one of the vigilantes told the Daily Mail. “I am here to talk to him. I want to see why he is here.”
The men decided to confront the squatters. The following day, two of the squatters were seen leaving the house. A man and woman were seen fleeing into a car with their faces covered avoiding contact with the media.
One of the squatters refused to leave.
Kevin Balletsy claimed that he was legally allowed to live in the house and claimed that he would leave once he received his deposit back.
“I have no idea what is going on here with this nonsense,” he said. “I’m trying to get my money back and just get out of here. I have nothing to do with this.”
According to Balletsy, he was paying $1,500 a month to live in the basement.
“I have receipts saying I paid landlord and the real estate other than that I am no part of it,” he added, pulling out a receipt for $1,000.
He is one of four people supposedly paying to stay at the property. Balletsy stated that he made the deal through a “realtor” that he identified as David Dubon and a “landlord” named Jay.
The Flushing, Queens home was left to Anadaloro after her parents passed away and is worth $1 million.
In New York City, it is against the law to evict someone from a house if they have been living there for at least 30 days. Many residents hope that Andaloro’s experience encourages lawmakers to reconsider the policy.
