Arsonist in Jail!

I had a great day snowboarding on Sunday. We went to Snow Trails right here in Ohio and the conditions were good. They had about 6 inches of real snow on Saturday and had done a good job grooming it. I particularly enjoyed the terrain park, or at least I enjoyed it right up until the moment I fell off a rail and about busted my butt (literally)! (OUCH!) I guess a day at the terrain park wouldn't be any fun without a few bruises.

Yesterday, Monday, I did a few little odd jobs on my rentals. I fixed some air leaks (cold air leaking around the door, etc) at one apartment and a leaking shower drain at another. I also put some vinyl concrete patch material on some steps while the weather was above freezing. Between doing these jobs, I showed 3 rentals and actually got one rented (complete with money)!

One of the applicants was a trio of young (20 something) people from Florida, two men and a woman. The looked at and wanted to rent my only remaining vacant 3 bedroom house. I explained our screening process to them and told them that the application fee was non-refundable. They took an application and said that they were going to the bank to get the application fee. This trio looked ok, but I still had an uneasy feeling about them. A little while later, the woman called and said that she had the application filled out and the money for the application fee. She also said that one of the men had decided to get his own place and wouldn't be applying! BINGO! I immediately knew what they were trying to pull! I told her that I understood that this man wouldn't be living with them, but I woud still be screening him since she originally told me that he would be living there. There was momentary silence on the line. So, I asked her if the truth was that the man couldn't pass the screening and she verified that he had indeed been recently evicted. What they were now doing was using her name to get an apartment and I would likely need to evict them also! Obviously, I told them that they were DENIED!

Here's an update on the arson/break-in situation that I reported on a couple of days ago. The police did catch and arrest the criminal. Evidently, this has become a relatively big deal in my area. I have received telephone calls from a police officer, a detective, and the arson investigator about the incident and I have now taken a copy of the security camera video to the arson investigator and the police. The police say that they are planning to charge the criminal with multiple counts, including at least one felony count, and are hoping to send him to prison for several years. Let's hope so!