A small portion of the mess left at the Teepee Creek property (photos courtesy of Gerry Hughes)

By Liam Verster

Owner left to clean-up

Giant mess left on property after arrests; owner and lawyer offer advice

Mar 2, 2020 | 5:00 AM

The owner of a rural property just outside of Teepee Creek has a massive mess on his hands, after the tenants he was renting to were arrested, and alleged stolen items were recovered on the property.

On Wednesday, February 19, RCMP executed a search warrant on the property, where they arrested 4 individuals, and recovered close to $200,000 worth of alleged stolen items. The goods ranged from cars, to generators, to high-end tires and rims.

The owner of the property, Gerry Hughes, says officers were on the scene for around six hours after the arrests, recovering what could be returned to their proper owners. However, the items removed from the land is just a drop in the bucket compared to what’s left.

“The stuff that they couldn’t reconnect, that they couldn’t verify who owned it, they left it. So, all of these things, there’s no serial numbers, there’s no identifying marks. It’s just piles and piles and piles and piles and piles of paraphernalia. Everything from wrenches, to a baby crib, a kids swing, everything under the sun.”

He says he’s “finding new nuggets everyday.”

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As of Friday, February 28, Hughes had personally removed ten truck loads of garbage and items from the property, but he says he’s barely made a dent in the mess that’s left.

He also says there’s close to $25,000 worth of work that needs to be done on the property, before it’s suitable to rent out again. Hughes says he doesn’t have that kind of money, which has to come out of his pockets, because insurance won’t cover it.

“There is not a policy in Canada that will cover any home owner for vandalism or criminal activity. So everything is coming out of my pocket. If they had burnt the place down, I’m insured for that. If the place had flooded, I’m insured for that. But, unfortunately, not for criminal activity or tenant vandalism or stuff like that, they don’t have any (insurance policies) out there.”

He says he’s not sure what he’s going to do with property when it’s all fixed up, but admits he is a little hesitant to rent it out again.

The only legal action Hughes can take now is a possible civil suit, and he’s also hesitant of this course of action. He says even if he won, he can’t guarantee the individuals have the money to make up for the damage.

Meanwhile, Denis Sawyer, a lawyer with Stringham LLP in Grande Prairie, says other owners can learn from this story, and take preventative steps to make sure they don’t run into a similar situation.

He says owners asking prospective renters for references should not take them for granted, and actually follow up and reach out to them.

“Asking ‘Is this person trustworthy? What’s your relationship to that particular person?’ That sort of thing can pop up a lot of red flags for people, that could probably avoid this kind of situation.”

He says property owners should do their due diligence, call previous landlords, check the prospective renter’s social media, and do all they can to make sure the individual will take care of the property.

Sawyer also says owners can also ask for credit checks or a personal property search, which can be very beneficial.

“It just gives a background of a person. So, at the end of the day, if, for example, written off credits from secured lenders would pop up on there, and that sort of thing. So you can tell what kind of person you’re lending this particular property to. So, if they’re in financial difficulties, those things will pop up.”

He also suggests requesting a criminal record check. Though it may take a week or longer for the record check to be processed, it can be extremely helpful in telling what kind of person the renter is. He also says if they refuse to get a criminal record check, it can be a red flag that this isn’t the kind of person someone would want to rent to anyway.

Sawyer also advises having clear language in the lease that specifies maintaining the property and not allowing subletters or others to live there.

He also suggests setting up periodic checks on the property.

“One of the things, especially for a rural property, which in this case it was, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to set up a six month check-in, and that sort of thing. Just to see how the property is making out. Of course you have to provide the adequate notice to the tenant (24 hours in advance), that’s one thing that is required by legislation here in Alberta.”

Sawyer says an owner could drive by a property in the city, and see the state of the house and property from the road, but this can be difficult in rural areas, where the house can’t be seen clearly as it’s off the road or obscured by trees.

Hughes says he usually does periodic checks of the property, but the individuals involved in this mess were only living there for a few months. He says there used to be long-term tenants who took care of the property, who he would check on it every three or four months. However, after the tenants moved out in November, and the other individuals moved in, Hughes says there wasn’t enough time between checks to justify going back to the property.

He echoes Sawyer’s recommendations, to check up on the property frequently, thoroughly vet potential renters with credit checks, and possibly with criminal record checks, and follow through on checking references.