A Georgia homeowner was arrested and charged with criminal trespassing after trying to move back into his house, which was reportedly occupied by a squatter, WSB-TV reported.
“As I was sitting in the police car and I saw that woman walking into my mom’s house, there’s something wrong with that photo. There’s something inherently wrong with that photo,” homeowner Loletha Hale told WSB- TV.
The incident took place on December 9, after a judge ruled in favor of alleged squatter Sakemeyia Johnson, according to reports. I returned to my home to clean up.
Police said Hale “conducted an unlawful eviction and forcibly removed Ms. Johnson’s property,” WSB-TV reported.
A squatter attempted to enter an abandoned house in downtown Edmonton. Friday, May 20, 2022, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. ((Photo: Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images))
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“I spent the night on a mat on the concrete floor in terrible conditions. And this woman, this squatter, was sleeping in my house,” Hale told the outlet.
Police confirmed to the judge that Hale did not have a “signed order of possession,” which would have allowed Hale to legally evict Johnson.
Johnson told police of the incident, “She came after me. She took this guy and I locked the door. I locked the screen door and he forced himself and told us to get out.”
Hale told the outlet she believed Johnson moved out of the home after his court victory in November.
Police in South Fulton, Georgia, have allegedly been detaining squatters at a home since Christmas 2023. (Fox 5 Atlanta)
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“I came back on Monday to start painting and she broke the lock on my house,” Hale said.
Johnson has not been charged with any crime, WSB-TV reported.
Georgia has seen an increase in squatter cases filed in court in recent years.
A report from the Pacific Legal Foundation found that squatter cases going to court were on the rise starting in 2019.
The report states that in 2023, there were 198 civil court cases involving squatting in the Peach State.
The Clayton County Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
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