Queens Landlords Traded Tenants' Safety For 'Cold Hard Cash': DA

ELMHURST, QUEENS -- A Queens couple is in hot water for allegedly endangering the lives of 15 tenants, who they are accused of cramming into an single-family house illegally converted into five separate living spaces.

Segundo and Maria Chimbay, of Elmhurst, were arraigned on Tuesday on accusations they ignored multiple attempts to vacate the illegally converted home on Forley Street, all while collecting thousands of dollars in rent from tenants and reassuring them the Elmhurst home was legal to live in, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.

Segundo Chimbay, 53, and his 52-year-old wife are now facing prison time for the alleged scheme, Brown said.

"The defendants are accused of trading the safety of their tenants for cold, hard cash," Brown said.

Brown said illegal home conversions can endanger the lives of the building's residents, firefighters and other personnel who, "in responding to an emergency, would have been confronted by a maze of rooms with no way out."

He said the couple collected rents between $750 and $1,4000 per month from the 15 tenants who lived in the building, despite being served with a City order to vacate it.

A complaint was first made on March 14, 2016, that single-family home the Chimbays owned on Forley Street had been illegally converted into multiple units, public records show. In an inspection later that day, the Department of Buildings allegedly found the building had been illegally converted to house four or more families and cited it as an "immediate hazardous violation."

The DOB issued an order for everyone living in the building to vacate it immediately, records show.

Buildings Commissioner Rick Chandler said the department issues such vacate orders "only as a last resort, when there's an immediate risk to tenants' safety."

But a followup inspection of the house on Feb. 15, 2017 allegedly showed there were still sleeping quarters in the cellar, three single-room units on the second floor and another on the attic. The DOB issued a revacate order, which noted all 15 tenants in the house allegedly "share a common kitchen on the first floor."

A month later, yet another followup visit from inspectors allegedly revealed living arrangements at the house remained the same.

All the while, the Chimbays allegedly continued to collect rent from their tenants and assure them they had nothing to worry about - The building was completely legal, Brown said.

The Chimbays were arraigned on Queens Criminal Court on 18 charges, including first-degree scheme to defraud, fourth-degree grand larceny, second-degree reckless endangerment and 15 violations of the New York City Administrative Code. Each faces up to seven years in prison if convicted.

The Chimbays were ordered to hand over their United States passports and were released from custody until their next court date on April 9.

Lead photo via Google Maps.

Caption: Owners of this house on Forley Street in Elmhurst allegedly housed 15 tenants at a time in this one-family home that they are accused of illegally converting into five single-room units.