CLEVELAND, OH – There’s a series of titles on porn websites that feature tenants having sex with landlords for rent. One 52-year-old Chicago landlord’s porn profile consists of 22 pages of tenants he describes by their color and lifestyle characteristics sucking his dick. His words. Not mine.
The landlord’s dick sucking tenants are women, men, transgendered women and middle-aged men he calls “sissies.” He seemed to have no shortage of horny-azzed fans of all sexes wanting to serve him orally in exchange for living quarters.
According to the landlord’s adult profile page on selected porn sites, his dick suckers include married couples who don’t know one or the other is blowing him for the rent. They even give him head in the building’s elevator as his tenants become his exploited and publicly-exposed amateur porn stars.
Landlords like the one described above exist all over the nation and now include a growing volume of immigrant EB5 passport investors like those Russian American Jared Kushner’s sister said the White House would let in the country to invest in their properties. Current and former drug dealers with large amounts of cash have been buying hundreds of homes and apartment buildings at foreclosure auctions to rent as a way to launder the money.
Rental property owners with already existent criminal mindsets are padlocking doors and ignoring the state’s landlord – tenant laws to pressure tenants out or to pay. Those telling tenants to either give them sex or rent are now U.S. Justice Department targets because of the CoVid 19 pandemic. So are tenants offering sex for rent; and the landlords who accept.
Landlords with unnecessary access to a tenant’s “Social Security” number are cutting deals with them not only for sex; but to receive benefits and identifications in the names of others. Imagine poor U.S. citizens whose criminally-minded or even foreign landlord has access to their Social Security numbers, dates of births and personal information that gives them the ability to use their identities either for cash or without their knowledge. No city council or state legislature has enacted an ordinance or law protecting citizens of this nation from landlord Social Security number theft. No landlord needs a prospective tenant’s SSN to rent a unit.
In an April 23, 2020 memo to the nation’s 94 U.S. Attorneys, Barr continued to direct the nation’s 94 U.S. Attorneys to pursue not only governors and mayors as the root causes of the economy closings that have forced 2 million Ohioans and 20 percent of U.S. adults and young workers out of jobs, but the people who are exploiting others and resources during the CoVid 19 cold and flu season. Barr has described the behaviors of the nation’s economy-closing politicians and the people exploiting their unconstitutional and un-American misconduct as exhibiting the worst behavior.
“As the country adopts drastic measures to slow the spread of COVID-19, many Americans have lost their jobs and many more have seen their wages curtailed. These losses have forced many to seek abatements or suspensions of their rent, with reports that nearly one third of Americans were unable to pay their April rent at the beginning of the month. Many landlords have responded to these circumstances with understanding and care, trying to work with their tenants to weather the current crisis. They should be commended for those efforts,” Barr wrote.
“There have been reports, however, of other landlords who have responded to requests to defer rent payments with demands for sexual favors and other acts of unwelcome sexual conduct. Such behavior is despicable and it is illegal. And the Department of Justice has not hesitated to intervene when clear misconduct occurs. This behavior is not tolerated in normal times, and certainly will not be tolerated now.”
The Trump Administration, curiously, under former U.S. Attorney General Jeffrey Beauregard Sessions launched a Sexual Harassment Initiative in October 2017. The U.S. Fair Housing Act prevents the type of sexual contact and financial or identity exploitation that comes with interactions between landlords and tenants. There aren’t supposed to be any impediments or barriers to a person having a place to live except their ability to pay; and even that’s covered under federal law with tax-supported units that must be made available for even the extreme poor with resources.
From the Trump administration’s perspective, since the president’s a 3rd generation landlord, “sexual harassment by landlords, property managers, maintenance workers, and others with power over housing often impacts society’s most vulnerable populations.”
Below are a simple of cases the Trump administration has prosecuted since 2017.
Thong Cao owned and rented properties in Wichita, Kansas. DOJ received complaints filed with the Department of Housing and Urban Development and other reports that Cao had been sexually harassing his female tenants, including touching and groping their bodies, breasts and buttocks, making unwelcome comments about their bodies, and asking them for sex. Some victims also reported that if they were behind on their rent, Cao would offer to reduce or excuse their late rent in exchange for sex and that he evicted tenants who refused his sexual advances. DOJ filed a lawsuit against Cao and his wife, Mai, who owned some of the rental properties Cao managed. The Caos settled the case in January 2020. The settlement requires the Caos to sell their rental properties and to pay $155,000 to the tenants he harassed.
Douglas Waterbury rented properties in and near Oswego, New York. DOJ received reports that he made unwelcome sexual comments to female applicants and tenants, touched or groped female applicants and tenants, demanded that female applicants and tenants engage in sexual acts with him to rent or continue renting an apartment, offered to reduce rent or security deposits in exchange for sexual acts, refused to make repairs in units with female tenants who rejected his advances, and forced female applicants and tenants to have sexual intercourse with him. DOJ filed a lawsuit against him. He settled the case in August 2019. The settlement requires him to hire someone else to manage the rental properties, and to pay $400,000 to the tenants he harassed. A similar lawsuit requires him to pay $400,000 to eight additional women he harassed and a fair housing organization.
Robert N. Hatfield rented, sold, and financed homes in Wilkes County, North Carolina. DOJ received reports that he made unwelcome sexual comments to female applicants and tenants, groped female applicants and tenants, offered to reduce or eliminate payments in exchange for sexual acts, and took or threatened to take away housing benefits from residents who rejected his advances. DOJ filed a lawsuit on July 13, 2017 against him. He settled the case on April 12, 2019. The settlement prohibits Hatfield from renting, selling, or financing residential properties, and requires him to pay $550,000 to 17 residents and applicants he harassed.
Hezekiah Webb owned and rented properties in St. Louis, Missouri, and East St. Louis, Illinois. DOJ received a complaint filed with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that Webb had made comments about a tenant’s body, asked her sexual questions, attempted to touch her breasts, and offered to reduce her rent in exchange for sex. Additional victims came forward to HUD and DOJ and reported that Webb made similar unwelcome sexual comments to them, touched their bodies, exposed himself, offered to excuse late rent or reduce rent in exchange for sex, and evicted tenants who rejected his sexual advances. DOJ filed a lawsuit against Webb and his wife, Jameseva, who co-owned properties with him. The Webbs settled the case in March 2018. The settlement prohibits the Webbs from serving as property managers and requires them to pay $600,000 to the tenants who were harassed.
Frank Tjoelker owns rental properties in Grand Rapids, Michigan. DOJ received reports that he made unwelcome sexual comments to female applicants and tenants. He touched their bodies without their permission. He said he would reduce rent, ignore late or unpaid rent, or stop evictions if the tenants agreed to perform sexual acts. He also threatened to evict women who did not agree to perform sexual acts. DOJ filed a lawsuit against him. He settled the case in October 2017. The settlement agreement requires him to hire someone else to manage the rental properties, and to pay $140,000 to the applicants and tenants he harassed.
The Kansas City, Kansas Housing Authority operates the city’s public housing. DOJ received complaints filed with the Department of Housing and Urban Development and other reports that Housing Authority employees were sexually harassing public housing residents and applicants. Victims reported that one employee gave housing to applicants who were appealing housing denials, and dismissed fines and fees residents owed to the housing authority, if he could show them his genitals, show them pornography, or ask them sexual questions. More victims came forward with reports that another Housing Authority employee asked tenants for sex in exchange for getting into public housing or getting a housing transfer. Victims also reported that a third employee evicted residents who rejected his sexual advances. DOJ filed a lawsuit against the employees and the Housing Authority. They settled the case in September 2017. The settlement requires the employees and the Housing Authority to pay $360,000 to the residents and applicants the employees harassed.
Gary Walden owned and rented properties in Morgantown, West Virginia. DOJ received reports that he grabbed female tenants’ bodies or tried to force them to touch him. He made unwelcome sexual comments and advances. He told them they didn’t have to pay rent if they had sex with him or one of his employees. He evicted tenants for saying no or reporting his behavior. The State of West Virginia prosecuted him for sexual abuse. He pleaded guilty in May 2015. DOJ filed a lawsuit against him. He settled the case in July 2017. The settlement requires him to pay $500,000 to tenants he harassed.
Jeffrey Wygul owned and rented homes in Henry, Tennessee. DOJ received a complaint filed with the Department of Housing and Urban Development that Wygul sexually harassed a tenant. He sent text messages to a female tenant repeatedly that demanded she send photos of herself to him. He then demanded that she pose for him in revealing clothes. Finally, he demanded that she pose nude for him. He said he would lower or waive her rent if she posed for him. When the tenant said she wouldn’t pose nude for photos, he evicted her. DOJ filed a lawsuit against him. He settled the case in December 2016. The settlement requires him to pay $15,000 to the tenant he harassed and to leave the rental business.
