Judge Orders Man to Vacate Home After Squatter ‘Friends’ Occupy His Garage and Refuse to Leave

A judge has ordered a homeowner in Kentucky, USA, to vacate his home following a dispute with alleged squatters who refused to leave the property.

Across the US, reports of squatters are increasing as many homeowners feel their rights have been restricted since the COVID pandemic and a surge in tenant protections.

A man who offered his visiting friends his garage to work on their car after it broke down has now been compelled to leave his house after they refused to depart.

Homeowner Daniel Toma stated that the pair of friends were visiting him during the summer when their car broke down. He offered his garage as a place for them to stay while they worked on it.

“I just want this nightmare to end. I’ve been homeless the last few days,” Toma told WSAZ 3.

The reported squatters were Toma’s friends, Amy Davis and her boyfriend, Tyler Sencuk.

‘Working on the car for days in the driveway, I didn’t want to throw them out on the street. I was trying to be kind,’ he said.

However, in mid-July, the couple brought a mattress into the garage, set up a Spectrum box, and then changed the locks. They eventually began receiving mail and refused to leave, informing Toma that they had ‘squatter‘ rights.

Toma stated that he did not want them to be there and that he had not received any rent payments.

‘I asked them to go, my roommates asked them to go, they wouldn’t leave.’

‘We tried to tell them to leave.’

Around Labour Day in the United States, Toma issued a 30-day eviction notice, which further escalated tensions and prompted the squatters to become increasingly angry.

Sencuk and one of Toma’s housemates then became involved in a confrontation, resulting in Sencuk applying for an emergency protective order against Toma.

According to Fox 19 news, once the protective order was granted, Toma was required to remain 500 feet away from them or his house.

The protective order stated that Toma was Sencuk’s housemate. He informed the judge that he paid rent in the form of ‘maintenance,’ and the judge accepted his word.

‘I feel like I have no power. I feel like I have no rights,’ said Toma, who has an upcoming court date to challenge the protective order, ‘I just want to sleep in my own bed.’

Ryan McCall, principal of McCall Sweeney & Silva, PC and an expert in eviction law, told Newsweek:

“Unfortunately, what is occurring here is all too common when it comes to squatters in the United States,”

“Almost every state has its own individual laws regarding Squatters. Unfortunately, once a squatter is able to assert their rights, they often can resort to filing criminal reports against the actual Homeowner to temporarily remove them from the property.