The victim had fallen behind on his house payments but was NOT in foreclosure. His mortgage company, thinking Florida was a so-called self-help state (it is not), hired paid thugs to destroy his home and steal his belongings. The local sheriff called it a civil case and has declined to investigate.
Quotes from the mortgage company and sheriff inside.
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Brooksville, Florida -- Imagine coming back to your home after being away a few weeks and finding the locks changed and the home trashed. That's what happened to Chris Boudreau of Brooksville. Boudreau showed us the home, which was stripped bare.
Walking through the living room, he tells us "I used to have a couch, a sofa, a couple of end tables, a TV, DVD player, tapes and cabinet... but they are now gone."
According to Altman, the woman from the mortgage company told him Florida is a “self help state,” and that’s why they are allowed to do this.
However, Altman explained he was holding the mortgage and Florida is not a self help state. He says he told the woman Florida has strict mortgage foreclosure laws and they were being violated by the company.
But the Hernando Sheriff’s Office apparently has no interest in enforcing those laws… or burglary, breaking and entering and trespassing, either. They say it is a civil matter, even though everything from the house was taken or thrown in the dumpster. The wedding dress belonging to Boudreau’s wife was even cut to shreds.