Tara McCafferty and her partners in crime Christopher Frizzell and Andrew Chestnut were able to defraud landlords in North Bay in the tens of thousands of dollars.
Landlords have told stories of dog feces and pet urine damaging properties in addition to non-payment of rent. There are reports of theft at businesses and yet these people have not been stopped. They have been free to wreak havoc on unsuspecting housing providers and employers.
One Landlord reported that rooms were subleased to others while making a huge profit, and not paying any rent in almost two years and they also did this to other landlords. In addition, look at the timelines below where it shows two properties were being rented at the same time.
The rent arrears owing to July 31, 2024 are $46,600.00. As of the hearing date on July 4, 2024 the Tenant was still in possession of the rental unit. The tenant testified that she lost her job in June 2023. The Tenant has secured new accommodations starting September 1, 2024. Under cross-examination, the Tenant admitted that she has no income and that she did not pay rent when she had income. The Tenant also admitted that she paid rent for a different unit instead of the rental unit in December 2023. The tenant may void this order and continue the tenancy by paying to the Landlord or to the LTB in trust $46,786.00 if payment is made on or before July 31, 2024 or $53,286.00 if the payment is made on or before August 3, 2024.
The rent arrears owing to June 30, 2024 are $45,430.00. As of the hearing date on June 19, 2024 the Tenant’s are still in possession of the rental unit. The tenants may void this Order and continue the tenancy by paying to the Landlord or to the LTB in trust $48,416.00 if payment is made on or before July 13, 2024. If the tenant’s do not void the Order, the Tenant’s shall pay the Landlord $35,186.00. If the tenant’s do not pay the Landlord the full amount owing on or before July 13, 2024, the Tenant’s will start to owe interest at 7% annually.
The Tenants shall pay to the Landlord $2,511.00 for the Landlord’s reasonable out of pocket expenses caused wilfully or negligently by the Tenants.
The tile in most of the bathroom has been removed. The majority of the floor is bare with the sub-floor exposed. T.M. testified that she notified the Landlord of the plumbing issue but only waited approximately 30 minutes before dealing with the issue herself.
The Landlord testified that the floor on the second level of the rental unit has become warped from animal urine and feces. The Landlord introduced evidence notes from an inspection of the rental unit which revealed the smell of urine and feces and that cat feces was observed. The Landlord seeks $6,200.00 to repair the floor. The contractor’s note report states that he needs to “replace the second level floors to modern laminate,” which includes re-levelling the floor and removal of damaged flooring. Per the Adjudicator: The landlord introduced into evidence no photographs which show the damaged floor. The written description from the contractor is vague and leaves me unclear on what exactly is damaged that might exist. Request Denied.
The Landlord seeks $2,400.00 in cleaning supplies and labour to remove pet odour. The Adjudicator is not satisfied on a balance of probabilities that the Tenant’s pets have caused damage to the rental unit by urinating or defecating on the rental unit floor. Additionally, I am not satisfied that cleaning costs fall under the category of damage. Request denied.
The Landlord seeks $705.00 to repair damage caused to seven doors and their surrounding trim. Photographs show significant scratches and marks around multiple doors in the rental unit. The scratch marks on the doors are excessive and not consistent with regular wear and tear.
If you have been impacted by these individuals, reach out to us so that we can connect all of you together at solo@solo.ca and your additional information will be forwarded to the North Bay Police and the Attorney General’s Office.
We’re helping housing providers fight back. In addition to educational content such as documentation and webinars, we’re leading an effort to help landlords understand how they can initiate criminal prosecutions for fraud, Freedom of Information requests and how to enforce payment through Small Claims Court. If you are a landlord in need of help, we welcome you to join us for free.
