The editorial office was called by a reader, the mother of the victim—the owner of an apartment on Gałczyński Street. Her daughter, who now lives in Ireland, rented the aforementioned apartment in June to a 31-year-old man. The lease was supposed to remain in force until December 27.
The problem is that the tenant readily moved into the apartment, but had no intention of paying for it.
The owner, her mother emphasizes, has not received a penny to this day. The man was so brazen that he changed the locks. He barricaded himself inside and is illegally sitting in an apartment that is not his. And—as our interviewee emphasizes—he still pays nothing.
In January, his electricity was cut off for this reason. But there is gas, so he cannot complain about the cold. Except that—once again—for now the apartment’s owner is paying for the heating.
Importantly, at the beginning of October, the daughter, together with her partner and her mother, wanted to enter their own apartment. A scuffle broke out with the squatter. According to the woman who reported the incident, the latter allegedly waved a knife, but fortunately the owner’s partner stopped him.
The result? Police arrived at the scene. Proceedings are under way concerning criminal threats.
During the police intervention, the 31-year-old claimed that the lease remained in force until December 27. But when that date passed, he did not leave the apartment.
What is more, it turned out that the man had a criminal past. He is a repeat offender who stole a laptop last November (allegedly to repay debts). And in February—we reported that he had been detained because he stole a bank card and used it repeatedly—he was already 32 by year of birth.
The resident of our county also heard additional charges: threats and violating the sanctity of the home. In total, the 32-year-old faces 16 charges. He could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison.
For now, however, he has not gone to prison. He still illegally lives in the apartment on Gałczyński Street. What is more, for some reason he damaged the mailbox.
As our interviewee calculates, the fact that the man is occupying her daughter’s apartment has already cost the latter around PLN 8,000. An eviction hearing is to take place soon. We will return to the subject.
What does the situation look like from a legal perspective? “Unfortunately, swift eviction is not possible, because our law is structured in such a way that this person cannot be removed from the apartment without a court judgment,” istotne.pl was told by Arkadiusz Krzemiński, head of the Verius Legal and Compensation Law Office. “To protect yourself from such a situation, it is best to conclude an occasional lease agreement at a notary’s office. First, you do not need to go to court with it—you can immediately contact a bailiff. Second, the security is that the tenant specifies in the agreement the address to which they will be evicted.”