Flop house found out: Clarkstown busts Rental property crammed with three dozen tenants, unsafe conditions

More than 30 migrants have been discovered living in deplorable conditions in a less than 1,500-square foot, three-bedroom cape cod-style house in Clarkstown and town officials are cracking down on this and potentially other similar situations.

Town Supervisor George Hoehmann said some of the people living at the 295 New Hempstead Road, including eight or nine children, are believed to be undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. from Ecuador . Rockland officials believe the residents entered  America via the Texas-Mexico boarder and were then transported  to New York City before  eventually coming to Rockland County. 

The single family home was found in a cramped state with mattresses placed all over the property, including the basement and garage, electrical outlets totally overloaded and sheets set up to divide rooms. Hoehmann convened an emergency town board meeting on Monday to authorize town lawyers to appear in State Court seeking to evict the occupants and begin taking legal action against the landlord, Shloima Koppel of Monsey. The investigation into who is coordinating these movements of migrants is ongoing. 

“This would have been an absolute disaster had there been a fire. People would have died here, first responders would have been injured or killed,” he said. “This is unacceptable. We are not going to allow this in the Town of Clarkstown.”

Rockland County Executive Ed Day said he is “fed up” with the current immigration policy.

“I’m calling upon the state attorney general to immediately open up an investigation into the movement of human beings all over this state. I believe it is human trafficking, I believe there is money involved, I believe it is illegal,” he said. “And while she is at it, she should take a look at it if it ends up that Mayor Adams is involved in this, in my simple mind, there are a number of court orders that he is held to. If he is violating those court orders, he should be held accountable or he should resign.”

Congressman Michael Lawler (R, NY-17) was critical of the Democratic administrations in Washington, New York State, and New York City for not doubling down on the migrant situation.

Lawler, whose wife is a naturalized citizen from Moldova, said he is not anti-immigration, but people must follow the procedure to come into the United States.