Almost everyone has heard of a story about someone walking into their apartment and realizing they’ve been robbed. But have you ever heard of a story where they stole the bed, the curtains and everything in between? Well that’s what Upper East Side resident, Nilay Shroff, is claiming he experienced in October 2013, when he found his apartment stripped of almost everything in an apparent “mistaken robbery.”
Mr. Shroff, a 27-year-old software maker alleged that late one night in October 2013, he entered his Yorkville apartment to find the shock of a life time; almost everything was gone. Once police arrived, Shroff and the officers became suspicious of the incident since the apartment burglary did not fit the details of a usual occurrence in multiple ways.
When Shroff asked the management company for the five-story building what happened, an employee admitted that a contractor had mistakenly targeted his apartment instead of the neighboring unit 2B that had been scheduled to be cleaned out due to the apartment being vacated and items being left behind.
The lawsuit, which Shroff filed early in 2014, states that the landlord did not send anyone to oversee the clean-out and as a result he lost everything including, furniture, clothes, a government security clearance, photographs, Social Security documents, personal items and more. All such items were taken to the dump and destroyed, an action Shroff said could have been easily avoided had anyone taken steps to ensure it was the right apartment. “I mean, there’s dirty dishes in the sink. There’s a wet towel. Clearly someone’s living there,” Shroff argued.
Shroff asserts that as a result of the Landlord’s negligence he has been left at risk for identity theft, has been forced him to take time off of work to rebuild his life, and has lost personal treasures that can never be replaced such as pictures of his late Mother who died years earlier due to cancer.
The court will ultimately decide if the landlord was at fault, but one thing is for sure, as a tenant you have rights to ensure you are treated fairly. If you or a loved one have suffered due to the negligent conduct of a landlord, contact an experienced real estate attorney. A skilled attorney will afford you the representation you deserve and ensure your legal rights are protected.
