Two owners of the “Gyptis” condominium located in the 3rd arrondissement of Marseille, described as a “vertical shanty town”, were sentenced on Monday by the criminal court for having collected rent despite a danger order affecting the building.
One of the owners was sentenced to three months in prison, suspended, and fined 8,000 euros, while the other was given 120 day fines of 80 euros each..
In addition to these penalties, the two owners of the “Gyptis” condominium located in the 3rd arrondissement of Marseille will have to reimburse the rents unduly collected from their tenantsor approximately 2,000 euros per month between March and October 2022, as well as 1,200 euros to each of the tenants in compensation for their moral prejudice.
A ban posted on the building
The court ruled that the owners could not ignore the safety order issued on February 22, 2022 by the mayor of Marseille, which concerned the common areas of this former student residence of 259 studios. The building suffers from multiple problems, such as water leaks, dangerous electrical connections and the presence of a drug sales point set up by traffickers.
During the investigation, several other owners also admitted to having been informed of the order and the ban on collecting rent, a ban that was also posted on the building.
The judges rejected the defendants’ arguments. One of them claimed that he was in Algeria and did not check his emails, while the other, who lives in Morocco, claimed that he had a management mandate given to a real estate agent. The court found that it would be impossible for them to maintain ties with the trustee.
An exclusively financial approach
Criticizing the two owners for not having “ not aware of their obligation to provide decent housing“, the court stressed their “ exclusively financial approach “The studios had been purchased for 30,000 euros each. As a result, the defendants were prohibited from acquiring real estate for residential or commercial use and were permanently banned from practicing the profession of housing rental.
The “Gyptis” was completely evacuated in March 2023 due to the dangerous nature of the premises. At the hearing on June 3, The president of the court had mentioned 68 interventions by the firefighters over a short period of time.including seizure fire starts.
Marie Gérald (With AFP)
Cover photo: AdobeStock
