Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced on the 23rd that Brian Rodriguez, who illegally occupied a residence in Flushing last year, rented out rooms without permission, and called the police to arrest the lawful homeowner, has pleaded guilty. He will be sentenced to two years in prison with an additional five years of supervised release on March 28.
The investigation by the Queens District Attorney’s Office revealed that the incident occurred on February 17, 2024. Homeowner Adele Andaloro conducted a routine inspection of her residence on 160th Street in Flushing and found that the locks had been changed without her knowledge. Previously, on January 21, when she last checked the property, no one was inside, and her keys still worked.
In the following days, Andaloro saw Rodriguez inside her residence multiple times, whom she had never seen or authorized to enter. On February 19, when she confronted Rodriguez, he claimed to be renting the house but could not provide a lease or rental information.
On February 29, Andaloro discovered several strangers living in her home. When one of the squatters left without locking the door, she entered and found multiple new locks installed on the front door, prompting her to contact a locksmith to change the locks. However, later that day, Rodriguez showed up again, forcibly pushing open the door when Andaloro tried to stop him but failed.
Upon police arrival, Rodriguez claimed to be a lawful tenant and accused the landlord of harassment and illegal eviction. Andaloro was subsequently handcuffed and taken away by the police.
Andaloro later filed a report with the Queens District Attorney’s Office, and the case was investigated by the Housing and Worker Protection Bureau within the District Attorney’s Office.
The squatter Rodriguez recently pleaded guilty in the New York State Supreme Court, admitting to the crime of “Falsely Reporting an Incident in the Second Degree,” a felony. This is because he falsely claimed to be a lawful tenant of the residence when questioned by the police and accused the landlord of illegal eviction in an attempt to cover up the fact that he unlawfully occupied someone else’s property.
District Attorney Katz emphasized in a statement that illegally occupying someone else’s residence and claiming a right to live there is neither legal nor acceptable. This case is an important victory for protecting the rights of homeowners in Queens.