(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — The LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office said it has removed nine people from what officials described as a “nuisance residence” that’s been the site of numerous complaints since 2021, including sexual battery, drug overdoses, thefts, noise and fire complaints.
The residence in question was located on a rural property at County Road 550 West and West Joliet Road.
The Sheriff’s office said deputies most recently responded to the location after calls came in that a fight broke out.
It was determined that the nine people who were living on the property — with ages ranging from the mid-twenties to the mid-forties — were squatters. Some were living in vehicles.
Police looked into property records and found that the owner died in 2021. Jason Stryjewski, 42, had been staying there since then, and the others followed.
Authorities reached a relative of the former owner, who said the people were not welcome. They were then ordered to leave on April 11.
“Based on Stryjewski’s vulgar response, investigators suspected that he and many others would ignore the directive,” a release from the sheriff’s office read.
On April 12, sheriff’s deputies returned with warrants and arrested everyone. Stryjewski was charged with maintaining a common nuisance, a low-level felony and criminal trespass. The others were charged with visiting a common nuisance.
If they return they’ll be arrested.
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