How do you evict someone who has been stealing?
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How do you evict someone who has been stealing?
My boyfriend has allowed a friend of a friend to live in his home without a lease agreement. The person has lived there for 3 months and has failed to fully pay rent. We have also recently found out he has stolen and pawned some property from the home. My boyfriend has a child that currently stays in the home. How can we get him evicted as soon as possible? The police have identified the items at the pawn shop and identified that the roommate is in fact the person who has stolen from the home.
Asked on June 25, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Arizona
Answers:
Anne Brady / Law Office of Anne Brady
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
Your statement that this individual has failed to "fully" pay rent indicates he has paid some rent. Without a lease agreement, it would be hard to quantify what the "full" rent is. If they have an oral agreement that he will pay a certain amount for rent, and if he has been paying less than that and your boyfriend has been accepting the payments, then under the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, your boyfriend can not evict him for non-payment of rent. If the police have identified this individual as a thief, why have they not arrested him? Regardless, under ARS section 33-1368.A.2, a landlord may evict a tenant based on "current criminal activity." If the police arrest and charge him, your boyfriend could evict him under this provision. Follow the procedure outlined in 33-1368, which is part of the Act and which can be found online. Provide ten days notice and then file a forcible detainer action (ARS 33-1377).
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