BofA Takes Squatter To Court Over $2.5 Million Home


Bank of America is taking a squatter to court after the man refused to leave a bank-owned $2.5 million mansion. The Florida resident is using an antiquated state law to remain in his foreclosed home.

Andre “Loki” Barbosa was told to leave the five-bedroom Boca Raton, Florida home in July but refused to give in to police and bank demands.

BofA foreclosed on the property in 2012, and the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s Office was notified that Barbosa would be moving into the home.

Shortly after he took up residence, Loki posted a message in the window of the home which named him as the “living beneficiary to the Divine Estate being superior of commerce and usury.”

Bank of America was having none of Barbosa’s stunt and filed an injunction on January 23, 2013.

According to the civil lawsuit, Barbosa and eight other tenants “unlawfully entered the property” and “refused to permit the Plaintiff agents entry, use, and possession of its property.”

Police attempted to remove Barbosa from the home on December 26 but were met with paperwork that appears to show his right to remain in the home. According to KMBZ, police decided not to act in case the paperwork was legitimate.

Mark Potok, a senior fellow at the Southern Povery Law Center, told KMBZ:

“A police officer walks up to someone who is claiming a house now belongs to him, without any basis at all, is handed a big sheaf of documents, which are incomprehensible. I think very often the officers ultimately feel that they’re forced to go back to headquarters and try to figure out what’s going on before they can actually toss someone in the slammer.”

A neighbor who chose to remain anonymous told ABC News that they believe Barbosa is just a “patsy” for his family members. According to the neighbor:

“This young guy is caught up in this thing. I think it’s going on on a bigger scale.”

The neighbor also notes that water has not been turned on for the home, proving that it is not a permanent residence.

The family has attempted to establish the home as an embassy, posting a notice in the window which states that anyone entering the home must produce two forms of identification to be inspected by the residents.

For its part, BofA has not backed down and plans to have the family legally removed from the home as soon as possible. Without a country backing the family’s claim of an embassy, the case should draw to a close in the near future.

Here’s the full story, which includes information about a potential domestic terrorists scheme involving similar situations throughout the United States:

[iframe id=”kaltura_player_1359310896? height=”221? width=”392? src=”http://cdnapi.kaltura.com/index.php/kwidget/wid/1_ymlwx6hj/uiconf_id/3775332/st_cache/78713?referer=http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/squatters-claiming-ownership-abandoned-houses-national-trend-18322303&autoPlay=false&addThis.playerSize=392×221&freeWheel.siteSectionId=nws_offsite&closedCaptionActive=true&”]

Share this article: BofA Takes Squatter To Court Over $2.5 Million Home
More from Inquisitr