Not even a week after their father died, an Atlanta-area family says multiple squatters moved into their childhood home and began posting videos to social media inviting people to house parties.
The Oliver family says their father died last week, and only two days after his passing, strangers started occupying his DeKalb County home.
Shortly after the move-in, they began posting videos online showing the inside of the house and promoting pool parties.
“It is a nightmare,” Lisa Heath, one of four siblings who owns the home, told WXIA. “These videos and advertisements are so far-reaching that we’ve received a call this morning from someone in Florida who said, ‘Hey, I’ve seen your dad’s property on the internet.’”
“It’s infuriating to see people in the home destroying it, partying in it, and inviting other strangers into that home,” Marcus Oliver said.
When the siblings called local police to visit the home, the occupants presented a lease to responding officers and claimed they were renting the property.
Shortly after, Kevin Oliver went to check out the home for himself and said he was met by the squatters, one of whom was armed with a rifle.
“They started making threats against my life,” Oliver said. “One of them told his friend to go get something, and he came back with a rifle in the doorway. He didn’t point it at me, but he made threats against my life and made it known that I might not walk out of there.”
According to WSB-TV, the Oliver family filed a squatters’ affidavit under the Georgia Squatter Reform Act, which requires the current occupants to provide documentation that authorizes their presence on the property or potentially face criminal charges.
Occupants who present a fake lease face an extra felony charge. The squatters who have taken over the Olivers’ home have until June 3 to present proof of legal residence to local authorities or risk being turned out by law enforcement.
The family said the squatters have dismantled the home’s surveillance system and removed a lockbox and one of the door knobs off a door.
“It pisses me off. Tremendously,” said Marlene Oliver-Bruce.
