A notorious Queens squatter was sentenced to two years in prison on Friday for illegally occupying a single-family Flushing home and renting out rooms to other illegal tenants in February 2024.
Brian Rodriguez, 36, of 161st Street in East Flushing, pleaded guilty in January to falsely reporting an incident after he forced himself into the house after the homeowner attempted to regain access, then falsely claimed he was a legal tenant facing eviction and harassment. The incident was captured by an Eyewitness News crew and generated national attention.
“Brian Rodriguez thought that he could get away with squatting inside someone else’s home and make a profit for himself based on his fictitious account of being a tenant,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said.
According to the charges and investigation, on Feb. 17, 2024, Adele Andaloro made a regularly scheduled stop to check on the 160th Street home in Flushing that she inherited from her father in 2004 and found that the front door lock had been changed without her permission. She had last visited the home on Jan. 21, and her property was unoccupied, so the lock had not been changed. Over the next several days, Andaloro observed Rodriguez inside the home. She had never met him or permitted him to access the property.
On Feb. 19, when confronted by Andaloro, Rodriguez claimed that he was leasing the property but did not specify the leasing company, individual, or agent. Ten days later, Andaloro observed several other individuals staying in her house without permission. After one of the occupants left the location with the front door ajar, Andaloro entered the property and observed several other new locks had been added to the front door.
She called a locksmith and immediately changed the locks. Later that day, Rodriguez came to the location and forced his way into the home by pushing the door open. Andaloro struggled to keep the door closed while ordering him to leave the premises.
When police from the 109th Precinct in Flushing responded to the scene, Rodriguez claimed that he was the legal tenant being harassed by the owner to evict him unlawfully. Police removed Andaloro from the property.
Eyewitness News caught the moment as police arrested Andaloro in her own home after she changed the locks in an attempt to keep Rodriguez and the other occupants out.
“I’m really fearful that these people are going to get away with stealing my home,” she told the reporter.
After her release and an unlawful eviction charge against her was dropped, Andaloro met with the Queens District Attorney’s office, which launched an investigation through its Housing and Worker Protection Bureau. Following the grand jury indictment secured by the DA’s office, Rodriguez surrendered to the DA’s Detective Bureau on April 18. The property was returned to the rightful owner, Adele Andaloro.
Queens Supreme Court Justice Leigh Cheng sentenced Rodriguez on Friday to a determinate term of two years in prison and five years post-release supervision.
“As today’s sentencing proves, my office has prioritized removing those who enter a home without permission and returning the property to the rightful owner,” Katz said. “I thank my Housing and Worker Protection Bureau for ensuring that justice was served.
The defendant will now spend two years in prison for his criminal actions and the lawful homeowner has her property back.”
