photo: getty
People are being locked out of their homes. In the middle of a global health crisis- and the landlord is doing it against court orders. In the Olde Kensington neighborhood of Philly, the tenants of The Moscow & Monica Apartments are dealing with horror.
Gagandeep Lakhmna (Lock-mm-nahh) is the landlord and despite an official order from Judge Joshua Roberts, Gagandeep is still keeping his tenants out of their apartment. He has canceled the door codes that allow keyless entry. Plaintiffs are requesting he be fined $10,000 for each day he's in contempt
Today’s petition is for them to get back into their homes immediately, and also for the landlord to pay a hefty fine every day the order is violated.
Court documents claim landlord Gagandeep Lakhmna has once again locked tenants out despite an order from Judge Joshua Roberts two weeks ago, stating they are allowed to stay.
The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office jointly filed a petition with community legal services for contempt of court, calling this not only cruel, but a clear violation of the Landlord-Tenant Act.
Keyless entry was meant to make access easy for families. But canceled door codes have led tenants to find creative ways of getting inside.
Although they’ve paid their rent, some are now staying with family. Others have opted to stay inside for fear of being locked out.
In a statement, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office says “no landlord should get away with illegally shutting off renters’ utilities and locking people out of their homes.”