Stalker victim’s brother, neighborhood taking on Seattle squatter

UPDATE: Lisa said that due to the publicity that the Dori Monson Show brought to her case, the Seattle Police Department has reached out and is committed to finding the squatter who has been causing her grief.

“Because of the show … I have since been contacted in the last two hours by not only a task force within the Seattle Police Department, I just had two officers arrive at my home and take full reports and additional evidence from my home, and they are willing to track this man down,” Lisa said. “So the response since the show has been awesome.”

Lisa added that since SPD has promised to find the squatter, Brian has decided not to go after the man himself.

“This show, Dori, has actually brought light to the whole situation, and I finally feel like I’m getting some of the protection and response that I need,” Lisa said.

A Seattle woman told KIRO Radio’s Dori Monson Wednesday afternoon that she lives in fear of a squatter who has been stalking her home all week. She reports that the squatter once again returned to cause trouble that evening.

Lisa has been living in an apartment in a different neighborhood while her house was renovated. It’s now on the market and she is in the midst of selling the multi-million dollar Seattle home.

But on Monday, she discovered that men had set up tents on her property and broken into her house. Upon confronting one of the squatters, he purportedly told her that the house was his own property and that she was trespassing. That same squatter returned multiple times after the initial incident. The first time that Lisa called police, an officer located the trespassers, but she said that he was unable to confront them because he could not get backup. Since then, police have not been able to find the suspects.

RELATED: Aberdeen property owner can’t shake homeless squatters

She drove back to the house on Wednesday evening. This time, she found signs up and down the street advertising that a party was taking place at her residence.

“He truly believes he owns this home … I think he was throwing himself a welcome or a congratulatory party on his new home, a house-warming,” Lisa said.

Lisa’s friends chased the squatters into a nearby park, but they escaped. In the meantime, her brother Brian said that law enforcement was no help.

“The police never showed,” Brian said. “My sister waited here for two hours by herself for the police.”

Lisa said that she finally left shortly before 10 p.m. because she was afraid to remain at the house by herself in the dark.

The Seattle Police Department reported that officers responded to the home around 10 p.m., but that Lisa had left when they arrived. SPD additionally advised calling 911 for this situation rather than the non-emergency line, which Lisa had called.

Resident-led squatter response

Brian said that he has the squatter’s name, license plate, and address, and has found out disturbing information about the squatter.

“The guy is very dangerous,” Brian said. “He has a history of mental illness. His family has removed him from the family situation.”

The squatter has gone to neighbors’ houses pretending to be pest control to gain information about residents on the street and access to their homes.

To protect his sister, Brian plans to take justice into his own hands.

“We’re going to flip the script on him and go terrorize him,” Brian said.

Dori tried to persuade Brian not to go after the potentially dangerous squatter, but the brother said that in light of what he sees as SPD’s failure to keep his sister safe, his mind is made up.

“The police aren’t showing up. What are we supposed to do?” Brian said. “My sister’s livelihood is at stake here and nobody is doing anything. So what do we do at this point?”

Brian said that he “sympathizes with every officer on the street,” but has made the “personal decision … to protect my sister.”

“I’m not going out to hurt these guys, but I’m going to confront them. I’m going to make sure they understand if they return, it’s going to be bad news for them,” Brian said. “Because this is out of hand.”

He said that the entire neighborhood is organizing in support of Lisa, including military veterans. Cameras have been put out in the area, and the neighbors are working to capture images of the suspect.

“We’re going to get this information out to everyone because he is dangerous,” Brian said. “We’ve got to form our own mission. That’s where we’re at.”

Lisa’s last name and neighborhood have been left out for personal safety. 

Follow @NicoleKIROFM