A Wisconsin woman is calling for changes in how authorities treat squatters in the Las Vegas Valley after she found strangers living in her home in June.
Jenny Rouzan, of Sheboygan, Wis., said squatters broke into her townhome near East Viking Road and McLeod Drive sometime in May. They changed the utilities into their name and caused damage to the residence, she said.
Rouzan called police officers to the home, but they told her there was nothing they could do after an individual living in the home produced what Rouzan said is a fake lease for the property and provided utility bills in their name.
“The only people who should be able to change the utilities are the owners, period,” Rouzan said. “That would stop a lot of this. One of the things that prevented the cops from doing anything is because they had utilities in their names.”
Rouzan described the experience as a nightmare. She said she and her husband lived in the home from 2019 until 2024 when her husband, Barry, was diagnosed with leukemia. The couple moved to Wisconsin to be closer to family, and financial hardship followed — the couple tried to sell the residence, but they were not successful.
Rouzan said she fell behind on the mortgage, the townhouse went into foreclosure, and it was briefly listed on a public auction site.
“That’s how we believe they got it in their sights,” Rouzan said of the auction listing.
A lease in dispute
Rouzan and her husband were eventually able to pull the house out of foreclosure and recover. In late June, however, she was shocked to learn from neighbors that people were living in the home and, she said, “there was a lot of people coming and going from here.”
Rouzan called the Metropolitan Police Department to the home on June 29. A person living in the home at the time, identified in a police report as Tyler Daniel Olivas, produced a lease to the residence and told officers she was subletting to two other people. She denied that anyone was squatting in the home.
Olivas goes by the first name of Tee Tee. She told Rouzan in a Facebook message she had legally rented the home from a Realtor named Mark Smith who claimed to be representing Rouzan’s husband. Olivas also said in a Facebook message to the Las Vegas Review-Journal she rented the home after coming across a Craigslist listing saying the property was for rent.
“Now if you claim that Mark didn’t work for you then all I ask is how did he have the code to the lock box that he gave me in order for me to gain access to the property?” Olivas wrote to Rouzan.
Olivas does have a prior criminal record with prior convictions for burglary and obtaining and using personal information of another and has served time in prison, according to online records in Las Vegas Justice Court, Clark County District Court and the Nevada Department of Corrections. Olivas, however, told the Review-Journal she should not be judged because of this and that she did not break into anyone’s property as a squatter.
“I do have a criminal history almost 10 years ago but since I’ve been out of prison I have changed my life and I’ve been a working productive person (and) member of society, and just because I have a past doesn’t mean that everything I say should be discarded,” Olivas said in a message to the news organization.
Forced into civil proceedings
Metro’s Public Information Office said there was nothing further officers could do under the circumstances they encountered at Rouzan’s home. The police who responded to the scene wrote as much in their report.
“Due to Tyler possessing signed and dated lease documentation and officers having no means to verify the validity of either party’s claim to the property, the matter was determined to be civil in nature,” police said. “(Rouzan) and Tyler were advised to contact the Clark County Constable’s Office regarding the dispute over lawful possession and the validity of the lease agreement.”
Rouzan said she’s frustrated with the police response. Officers were given information from Rouzan’s Realtor, her homeowner’s association and her husband saying they did not authorize anyone in their home, let alone lease it out. They also showed officers damage to the front door of the house and said a real estate agent lock box had been removed. She said a copy of the lease in question was not collected by police for further examination.
“We all certified the house was not for rent and had never been for rent,” Rouzan said, adding she ended up having to pursue civil proceedings that ultimately allowed her back in the house.
Rouzan is also pursuing a complaint with the Police Department over the response.
Changing the law
Rouzan recently reached out to Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom for help. Segerblom said Monday he is looking to work with Nevada Assemblywoman Venicia Considine to discern whether laws need to be changed when it comes to squatters.
”It is just crazy that the property owner has to file a lawsuit to get the person out of their house even though it is their house,” Segerblom said. “We are going to see if we can do something. I know Metro’s hands are kind of tied right now. Maybe we change the law or change the process.”
Barbie Hudson of Southern Nevada Eviction Services said her office gets calls almost every day from frustrated Las Vegas Valley homeowners about squatters.
“Owners don’t have the right to just go in and take their property back,” she said. “They have to do an eviction, so they contact us. We serve a four-day notice to surrender that notice, and once it expires, we file for an eviction.
“Homeowners need more rights when it comes to getting their homes back quicker,” she said. “The law needs to be changed to where Metro has more that they can do in the process. If a homeowner can verify that these people do not or should have possession of their property Metro should be able to come in and treat it just like a stolen item so they can assist the homeowners.”
Las Vegas attorney Judah Zakalik, co-founder of PandA Law, said pursuing an eviction under such a circumstance is frustrating for homeowners. He said there are also a lot of cases in Las Vegas where renters get scammed by fake landlords.
“Nevada is pretty expeditious in doing this compared to other states like California or Washington where it can take months and months,” he said. “Tenants don’t have as many rights here as they do in California or Washington. In Clark County, we are somewhat more landlord-friendly.”
Contact Glenn Puit at gpuit@reviewjournal.com.
