"Insult to Injury" as Tenants Forced Out by Porch Collapse Suffer Break-Ins

The tenants at 3 Nira Ave. have been through a lot. Last Sunday night their back porches collapsed during a barbeque, injuring more than a dozen.

All seven tenants were forced to vacate the building because of safety concerns. And amidst their disrupted lives of couch surfing comes word that at least two of their apartments were broken into.

On Thursday, some of the tenants had returned to collect mail and they noticed the front window of their apartment had been pried open, according to a police report.

The homeowner had apparently changed the locks, as an investigating officer found new door locks. However, neither the deadbolt nor door lock were secured. The officer found evidence of a break-in in unit 2. A green box with jewelry and $1,000 cash was missing.

An officer was unable to find evidence that unit 1 had been broken into, although its outside door was also not secure. According to the police report, the landlord and another tenant were to contact the occupants so they could check if they also had been broken into. One tenant told Patch all three units had indeed been robbed. The tenant asked to remain anonymous.

In a separate report, a tenant of unit 3 reported that someone had entered the unit through a common hallway through an unlocked door. A Nintendo Wii game system and a suitcase are missing from that unit.

The home is owned by Imtiaz Ali of Minnesota, according to an Inspectional Services report. It is Ali's responsibility to make sure the seven tenants of the building have places to stay until he makes repairs, according to Lisa Timberlake of the Inspectional Services Department.

One tenant called the break-ins, "insult to injury." The tenant, who asked to be unnamed, said the landlord had promised not only to change the locks but also to board up the building. Further, the tenant said the landlord has not made good on his responsibility to ensure tenants have housing until repairs are complete.

The city evicted all seven tenants because safety codes require buildings to have at least two exits, in the case of emergencies like fires.

The tenant confirmed what firefighters said about the incident, that grilling was being done in the yard, not on the porches. The tenant said the gathering was a "calm birthday party" and that maybe 8-10 people may have been on the porch that collapsed.