Washington property owner says squatters returned after SWAT raid: ‘I’m going to give up’

The squatters who took over Washington state property during the coronavirus pandemic were permanently removed by a SWAT team this week, but returned to the property shortly thereafter, the property owner said.

About 30 police officers took part in Wednesday’s raid on property in Lynnwood, Wash., that was seized by squatters as part of a stolen car trafficking investigation. Police say 52 vehicles were found on the property, some of them stolen, as well as drugs and firearms. It is reported by KIRO 7 News.

The property owner and neighbors told the publication they have been dealing with squatters for several years, since the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, when evictions were banned by the state and federal governments.

“A bunch of criminals,” said Laleh Kashani, the owner of the property. “They took over the house and we couldn’t get a dollar in rent or get a mortgage.”

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Shortly after the property was cleared, the squatters reportedly returned to the site, although Kashani asked a contractor to replace the locks after the raid.

“We changed the locks and they even broke it. So they should at least be arrested for hacking, and they didn’t,” Kashani explained.

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A Washington property owner says she can simply leave the state after squatters take over her property. (News KIRO 7)

Lieutenant David Hayes of the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office told the publication that there were 5 arrests during the raid and that “several people” were residents of the property both “short-term and long-term” who were “without property” and lived in “unhealthy and unstable conditions”.

Fox News Digital spoke to Lieutenant Hayes, who said making sure the squatters don’t come back “is mostly up to the property owner.”

“The sheriff’s office will respond to complaints from property owners that people have returned, and if we have the ability to legally evict people from the property, we will,” Hayes said. “What a property owner may need is to go and get a court order to move people out of there, and often that’s necessary.”

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The Washington police state that the eviction of squatters is a civil matter that must be heard by the courts. (News KIRO 7)

Hayes said he had no “personal knowledge” that squatters had broken into the property and had not heard from law enforcement about it, but had seen reports saying it did. Hayes was unable to confirm that the problem has been around for several years, but acknowledged that the homeowner is in a “very bad situation.”

“We don’t know who has the legal right to be in the territory and who doesn’t,” Hayes continued. “And it’s a really annoying thing, and I understand it’s not unique to the state of Washington, but when it comes to the Landlord Act and the civil aspect of renting or living, law enforcement can’t just go to the property. and say yes, you have a place here, but you don’t.

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Lale Kashani says squatter situation brought her to tears (News KIRO 7)

Kashani says the disappointment over the years has brought her to tears and she is considering leaving the state altogether.

“I’m literally crying,” she told the publication. “I’m going to give up, I’m going to lose my home. Whatever we owe him, let the bank take him.”