Tenant kills his landlord

NY Post

 A deadbeat, rent-owing tenant shoved his Queens landlord down their building’s front stairs so hard on Sunday that the man later died — and the whole thing was caught on the home’s security camera, the victim’s grandson and police sources told the Post.

Landlord Edgar Moncayo, 71, was trying to collect rent around 3 p.m. at his 102nd Street building in Corona when 22-year-old tenant Alex Garces allegedly pushed him down the stairs, cops said.
His grandson, Nicolas Jativa, 20, told the Post that Moncayo was pronounced dead at 12:30 p.m. Monday after being on life support with head trauma at NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst.

“My grandmother wasn’t home when this happened, she was on her way back home already when she got a call from a neighbor telling her what had happened,” the grieving grandson said. “As soon as she saw my grandfather she just dropped to her knees and started crying. I didn’t believe it until I saw the video for myself and it’s horrible.”

Police attributed Moncayo’s injuries to a landlord-tenant dispute and were looking for Garces and possibly a second person for questioning, according to officials.

The tenant initially told cops the fall was an accident that happened as he tried to carry his mattress out of the building and hit the front door, causing Moncayo to fall, police sources said.
But the landlord’s family reviewed video from the Ring video camera installed on their door and saw a horrifying series of events unfold.

In the video, the victim can be seen standing in front of the building on the phone with his wife trying to hold the door shut to keep Garces from leaving, the grandson said. The tenant was able to get the door open, however, and allegedly pushed the landlord down the steps, where his head hit the concrete, he said.

Council aide owes DOB $38,000

Avella vs. property tax cheats

From the Times Ledger:

Citing apparent attempts to beat the system, state Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) criticized the city Department of Finance, accusing it of allowing delinquent property owners who failed to pay their property taxes to remove their properties from the annual tax lien sale by submitting fraudulent checks.

According to Avella, property owners have exploited the system by knowingly submitting checks that later bounced, removing them from the annual tax lien sale. He said Finance had no means of detecting such an act and only enacted a $20 penalty for the bounced checks.

Additionally, Avella said he took issue with the payment plans Finance would organize with the apparently negligent property owners without requiring a down payment. The forsaken land, Avella said, eventually becomes an eyesore in the surrounding communities when property owners fail to pay the taxes due.

A Finance representative said the department was looking into the issue and considering ways to alleviate the supposed fraudulent activities.

“The fact that the Department of Finance is letting these negligent property owners game the system is unacceptable,” Avella said. “Every year the city is being cheated out of much needed property tax revenue.”

In response, Avella introduced legislation in the Senate to force the city to require payment of delinquent charges by certified check or money order, eliminating the bouncing check schemes. The bill would also require a 20 percent down payment for any proposed installment plan, Avella said.

Estelle Cooper's family runs shady day camp

From A Walk in the Park:

Ilene Balsamo, the daughter Assistant Commissioner for Queens Parks and Flushing Meadows Corona Park Administrator, Estelle Cooper, runs a private day camp on parks property. Arnold Diaz looked into allegations of counselors from Community Day Camp, a camp run by Balsamo, not getting paid. The unpleasant two-part report was broadcast on MY Fox.

The camp - which uses Flushing Meadows Corona Park - charges fees ranging from $ 900 dollars per child for two weeks to $ 2, 675 for eight weeks. The camp however pays the city just $ 1 dollar per child per day according to a source.

According to the report, Ilene had a mother of one of the counselors arrested for assault after they got into an altercation over her daughter not getting paid.

At one point in the footage, a person reported to be Ilene's son, lifts up his shirt, exposing his huge hairy belly and dances around calling himself a bear in an apparent attempt to block the camera from filming his mother.

More vendors have now come forward saying they too have not gotten paid.

The Parks Department did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment. - Geoffrey Croft

Victims include Vallo Transportation and Terence Park!

Only $263M?

From the Daily News:

Deadbeat contractors and developers have left a trail of destruction across the city, racking up more than $263 million in unpaid fines, yet many continue to work unpunished.

Many fines are levied but few are collected. Last year, the Buildings Department collected $1 for every $5 in fines, issuing $132.4 million in penalties while taking in just $29 million, records show.

Of the $263 million in unpaid fines dating back to 2000, $130 million has been deemed "uncollectable" because violators lack assets, went out of business or beat the clock on the eight-year statute of limitations.

"This failure to collect revenue is particularly galling when we are talking about closing Fire Department engine companies," said Councilman James Oddo (R-S.I.), chairman of the Task Force to Improve the Buildings Department. "What good is it when we enact laws and they don't have teeth?"

A bill has been introduced in response.