COLLEGE PARK, Ga. — A College Park man says his rental company evicted him illegally and when they did, they threw away all of his belongings.
Virgil Morrison told Channel 2 investigative reporter Ashli Lincoln that his rental company, Invitation Homes, hired crews that went through the back door of his home and took every item he owned.
He said it was the week Hurricane Helene was expected to make landfall.
“During that week, Invitation Homes conducted malicious and barbaric behavior,” Morrison said. “They didn’t go by the law, they were like renegades.”
Morrison said he was left with a shell of a home.
Lincoln checked court records and found Morrison’s case was stayed last year and there is no signed eviction notice from a Fulton County judge.
A neighbor’s surveillance camera captured crews arriving in pickup trucks on Sept. 24.
“There was no marshal, there was no team, it was just Invitation Homes and their employees,” Morrison said.
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He says he was out of town and when he came home, none of his stuff was on the curb. Instead, it had been thrown out.
Video shows boxed rental trucks leaving his home.
“The thing is, I can buy new furniture, I can buy new shoes, but I can’t buy birth certificates, passports, bank records,” he explained.
Lincoln reached out to Invitation Homes about this via email last week but has not received answers to her questions.
This all happened the same week the Federal Trade Commission ordered Invitation Homes to pay nearly $50 million in fines on accusations it executed unfair eviction practices, deceiving renters, charging junk fees, and withholding security deposits.
“For them to perform this type of behavior it should be illegal and they should be ashamed of themselves,” Morrison said.
Invitation Homes sent Lincoln a statement on Friday, saying:
“All parties involved are represented by attorneys, and we do not comment on pending litigation. However, we will note that the individual’s report contains serious inaccuracies while omitting key facts. Our records reflect that the individual communicated to us that the home would be vacated on September 18, 2024, and he caused power to be disconnected to the home. Further, there is evidence, including photos, which appear to establish that the interior of the house was emptied and abandoned prior to our check on September 24, 2024, to confirm vacancy. We look forward to the Court’s review of that evidence and adjudication of this matter.”
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