A Queens landlord who reported his tenants to ICE after they complained about him to the city has been slapped with a retaliation charge, the Daily News has learned.
"Our message is loud and clear: we will hold landlords accountable for discrimination in our city," Mayor de Blasio said in a statement. "We stand with tenants, regardless of their origin, in Queens and across the five boroughs."
The city would not name the Ridgewood landlord, citing a continuing investigation, or the tenants, out of fear of further retaliation.
The city Commission on Human Rights initially served the landlord with a notice of complaint alleging discrimination in March, after immigrant-advocacy group Make the Road NY alerted them to problems at the building.
The landlord responded by denying the charges - and copying ICE on his letter, which contained the personal information of his tenants.
That, the commission says, violates the city's Human Rights Law, which prohibits people from retaliating after someone files a discrimination complaint. Sapna V. Raj, an assistant commissioner at the commission, said the commission will continue to go after anyone who retaliates against New Yorkers reporting discrimination.
