Heidi Russell said she took the woman to court but the judge ruled that the alleged squatter would be allowed access to the apartment for the foreseeable future.
A New York woman says an alleged squatter has been living in her Greenwich Village home without paying rent for months. "It's been over 14 months of pure hell, basically," Heidi Russell told Inside Edition.
The apartment in New York City's Greenwich Village is just 650 square feet. Russell said the woman moved in a year ago and was supposed to pay $2,000 per month in rent, but hasn't paid a dime in over a year.
"Even though she's a squatter, the city says that she has these rights," Russell said.
The pandemic has put evictions on hold in the state of New York. Russell said she took the woman to court but the judge ruled that the alleged squatter would be allowed access to the apartment for the foreseeable future.
Russell said the alleged squatter sprays COVID-19 disinfectant everywhere, even on her. "There were three instances where she actually raised the bottle and sprayed the back of my neck," Russell said.
Russell said she has to brush her teeth in the building's laundry room because her "roommate" has taken over the bathroom.
The woman has been identified as Kate Gladstone. On social media she describes herself as a TV producer and "Happy New Yorker."
"It's just unconscionable and unimaginable," Russell said.
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