PORTLAND, Ore. - Sheriff’s deputies evicted a couple accused of squatting from a Southeast Portland home on Monday on the authority of a judge.
Around 3 p.m., a locksmith came - on the sheriff's behest - to change the locks. The goal? Keep the couple living at this home, Roberta and Carlos, out.
By 3:35 p.m. the couple, whom the bank has called "squatters," yelled at a KATU News crew while packing up boxes with their belongings.
"You guys are nothing to me," one yelled. "Just a bunch of (deleted)!"
This comes after KATU's coverage in mid-July of a police investigation to see if the locals accused of taking over this Southeast Henderson Street house are getting help from a national group.
We have learned that a national group called "Take back the land" helps squatters around the country get into vacant homes - saying housing is a human right.
Throughout the Northwest similar stories are cropping up. In Kirkland, Wash., in June KATU's sister station in Seattle - KOMO News - reported on a family who took over a bank-owned multi-million-dollar mansion.
In Kirkland the bank ended up hiring 24-hour security to ensure the squatters don't trash the place, but security guards were under orders to let the squatters come and go as they pleased.
We also have heard from people in different parts of Portland who say the same thing is happening in their neighborhoods. To control a problem house, police say to call quickly - before squatters establish residency. Residency rights kick in two weeks after someone starts staying in a home.
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Courtesy of: Prudential Northwest Properties
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