Vagrant sets up home outside resident’s wall

The busy Leslie Avenue has not deterred the vagrant from setting up camp in an open plot adjacent to the road.

McFarland noted he had rented the property out for years and only moved into the house at the end of January. The house was already broken into and he reported the incident to the Douglasdale Police Station. “This has been a safety concern for my family, we lived in fear not knowing when he was going to enter our property,” he said.

Not only was it a major safety issue, but it has also progressed into a health hazard. “He used a bucket system as a toilet, the smell was fowl and we could not handle it any longer. It became a health concern.”

McFarland noted the vagrant was living outside his property for a year, and the tenants living at the house at the time continuously complained about the vagrant.

According to Ward 115 councillor Chris Santana, he contacted the police and Metro police on many occasions but nothing was done. Santana believed the lack of policy and law protecting both vagrants and homeowners is the problem. “If we remove the vagrant, he has no place to go. Additionally, the homeowner cannot confront or physically remove vagrants, it’s a catch 22 situation,” he added.

On 17 February, the vagrant allegedly attempted to break into McFarland’s property once again. Irate, he called Douglasdale Police Station. The police arrived on the scene and escorted the vagrant out of the property and instructed McFarland to burn his belongings.

Douglasdale Police Station Warrant officer Balan Muthan confirmed the case and said the vagrant was being dealt with. He said the police will make sure this does not occur again.

McFarland stressed he would like the community to be aware of situations like this and the community should work together to avoid this in the future.

If you have had a similar experience, tell the Fourways Review more about it in the comments section below.