Pinched Home Hijacking Suspect: 'I Didn't Mean To Commit Crime; I Filed All Proper Paperwork I Learned About At 'Adverse Possession' Seminar'

In Fort Bend County, Texas, KHOU-TV Channel 11 reports:

• A woman who is facing criminal charges for squatting in a Fort Bend County home said she never intended to break the law. “I work hard every day and I didn’t do this from a criminal standpoint at all,” said Chinyere Ngwu outside her family’s southeast Houston restaurant. Ngwu spoke out a day after a Fort Bend County grand jury indicted her on charges of burglary.



• The case involves a home located in the 4400 block of Everhart Terrace Circle near Missouri City. Ngwu attempted to assume possession of the property, which she believed was in foreclosure. “I followed all of the proper procedures and filed all of the paperwork,” she said.



• Ngwu said she learned about the practice called “adverse possession” at a seminar in Houston. But not long after she began to move her belongings into the house, neighbors discovered that the property had not been foreclosed on.



• “We contacted the owner,” said Pam Foster. “We knew this individual wasn’t supposed to be there and had broken into the house.” Confrontations between Ngwu and the neighbors followed.



• Eventually, the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office started to investigate, and the district attorney decided to pursue charges. Ngwu said all she wanted was a good place to raise her three children. “We all live and learn,” she said.

Source: Woman charged with squatting in vacant house says it’s a misunderstanding.