An outraged man has claimed that squatters broke into his house and moved in with a U-haul truck while he was away caring for his sick wife.
As reported by WSB-TV, Paul Callins reportedly returned from caring for his ill spouse to find squatters occupying his vacant property on Ashton Oak Circle, a neighborhood of DeKalb County in east Atlanta, Georgia.
Callins revealed that he inherited the house from his late father - who passed away three years ago after battling cancer - and spent thousands renovating the property by himself.
He intended to rent it out to a government-subsidized tenant but his plans have been shelved after the settlers used a "fake lease" to unlawfully occupy his home and subsequently changed the locks.
The homeowner believes the squatters, who he speculates are three people, targeted him after he posted an online ad about the property.
Speaking to the publication, he explained: "Basically, these people came in Friday, broke into my house, and had a U-Haul move all their stuff in. It’s frustrating. It’s very frustrating. I can’t even sleep."
He opened up about how he's faced nothing but obstacles to remove the alleged intruders from his home, stating: "When I called the police, they said since they have a fake lease, that they can't do anything. That it's a civil matter."
Due to Georgia law, homeowners can't forcibly evict the squatters, instead, they must file an "Affidavit of Intruder," which then needs to work its way through an arduous court system before authorities can act.
"I have to go through the court system, and I understand it could take 60 to 90 days," Callins told the outlet.
According to Fox News, good news may be on the horizon for Callins as the Georgia General Assembly is on the brink of passing legislation aimed at addressing such concerns. The proposed law would allow cops to apprehend squatters for trespassing and promote the use of a fake lease as a felony offense.
Representative Devan Seabaugh, a Republican co-sponsoring the Georgia Squatter Reform Act (HB 1017), spoke to Fox News about the law, stating: "We have to do something about this. We're dealing with criminals.
"These are people that know exactly what they're doing, and they're stealing other people's most valuable capital, which is their home. I've heard from a lot of people. This has caused them to file bankruptcy," he continued.
"They're mentally harmed by it. It's a tough situation, and we have to do something. I don't know how it took us this long to get here … but no more free rides," Seabaugh added.
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