A Brooklyn squatter admitted he illegally occupied a Jamaica home and provided forged documents to authorities to stake his claim to the property as a legal tenant.
Lance White-Hunt, 24, of 18th Street in South Slope, pleaded guilty to identity theft in the first degree, offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, and tampering with physical evidence, Queens District Attorney Melinda Kats announced on Friday.
As part of his plea, White-Hunt is expected to pay restitution to cover the victim’s attorney fees for a civil suit he brought against the rightful owner and her broker.
“Our first priority with squatters is to get trespassers out of the home,” Katz said. “This squatter’s actions were especially egregious as he brazenly took the legal homeowner to court as part of his bogus claim as a tenant.”
According to the charges, on or about Feb. 23, 2024, the owner of a home on Lakewood Avenue alongside the Van Wyck Expressway in Jamaica listed it for rent through a broker at Top Nest Properties.
For several weeks, the broker visited the location multiple times a week and observed the entire house to be vacant, all the windows closed and undamaged, and the two front doors locked. She also had a functioning key for the two front doors.
On March 1, the broker made a regularly scheduled stop at the property and observed that the locks had been changed on the front door leading to the studio unit of the residence and her key no longer worked. Three days later, the broker arrived at the residence and observed that the locks had been changed on the front door leading to the upstairs unit. She also observed White-Hunt inside the residence.
The police were called to the home, and White-Hunt said he had been staying at the location since January. He provided a purported lease with the broker and Top Nest Properties listed as the landlords. The broker reviewed the lease and determined that she had never seen the document and that her signature on it was forged. The broker’s statements were corroborated by the owner of Top Nest Properties.
The following day, police from the 113th Precinct in Jamaica arrived at the location and once again White-Hunt provided a bill from National Grid and AT&T as purported proof of residence. Both companies later confirmed that the provided account numbers did not exist in their official records.
On March 14, White-Hunt filed a lawsuit against the homeowner’s LLC, the broker, and Top Nest Properties for an illegal lockout. As part of the civil suit, White-Hunt filed a residential lease that was determined to have been forged and the document was a different lease than that provided by the defendant to officers on scene on March 4. The civil lawsuit was later discontinued with prejudice.
Following an investigation into the matter by the District Attorney’s office, White-Hunt was arrested on May 13 by members of the District Attorney’s Detective Bureau.
Queens Supreme Court Justice Toni Comino ordered White-Hunt to return to court on Nov. 6, when he is expected to be sentenced to five years probation, 20 days of community service, and pay $3,900 in restitution.
We have not only held the defendant accountable but have also secured restitution for the victim who has spent a hefty sum on legal fees and home repair because of the defendant’s actions,” Katz said.
Late last month, Katz and Assembly Member Stacey Pheffer Amato hosted an informative webinar on ways in which homeowners can protect their properties from squatters which she acknowledged is a “huge problem” across the borough.
“My office is committed to protecting property owners from fraud, scams and criminal trespass in Queens,” Katz said.
