A Queens man is making life hell for his neighbors in an Astoria building by running naked through the hallways, yelling into a megaphone, banging on walls with a hammer and giving children nightmares, according to terrified residents and court records.
According to court documents, Alexander Rice’s insane, two-year reign of terror at 23-35 Broadway led three tenants to terminate their leases and move out.
One disturbance in January required an NYPD SWAT team to be dispatched to his home.
“We’re all scared,” one resident, who asked not to be named for fear of what Rice, 48, might do, told The Washington Post this week.
“My kids have nightmares about this guy.”
“They sleep under the bed,” she said, near tears.
Reis has allegedly engaged in erratic, lewd and threatening behaviour, but police have never arrested him and the building’s owner has not been able to evict him in court.
“He’s going around kicking in people’s doors and throwing things out the windows into the street,” another neighbour said.
“He once said he would burn the whole building down.”
The building’s owner, Broadway Crescent Realty, has been trying to evict Reis since June 2023, when he filed an eviction lawsuit in Queens Housing Court, alleging he violated the terms of his lease.
A judge quickly dismissed the lawsuit, but the company moved to reopen it in December.
According to court documents, Reis was allegedly wandering the building’s hallways naked, masturbating in the building’s common areas, threatening people with a hammer and wooden plank and yelling foul language and racist and homophobic slurs through a megaphone.
Residents said they heard what sounded like a chainsaw coming from Rice’s top-floor apartment, according to court records.
Rice is LinkedIn Photos He is an #opentowork advocate, but also claims to be a senior software engineer at a Manhattan-based management consulting firm.
One neighbour said his odd behaviour also included “constant noise”.
“He repeatedly plays recordings of himself talking and of a baby crying,” the resident noted.
“The other day I was listening to porn really loud.”
Residents claim the door to Mr Reis’ apartment has been smashed open from the inside out after being bashed in with a hammer countless times.
Some residents told The Post that they take the six-story building’s stairs to avoid running into Rice when he takes the elevator for a cigarette break.
Rice has been living in the rent-stabilized building since 2020.
He hasn’t signed a lease since late 2021, according to court records.
“We have called the police on multiple occasions and made every effort to remove this tenant,” Broadway Crescent Real Estate told tenants in a July 1 email, reported The Washington Post.
“We are very sorry about your situation, but please know that it is a huge burden on us as well.”
The NYPD has been dispatched to the building 281 times over the past two years, including an incident on Jan. 20 when Reis allegedly barricaded himself inside an apartment after a resident called 911.
According to security camera footage obtained by The Post, a SWAT team was called in to try to persuade Reis to open the door.
The lawyers could not be reached for comment, but Broadway Crescent Realty has refused to hire 24-hour security to keep its tenants safe, claiming it cannot afford to pay security fees of $7,000 to $10,000 a month.
“They are exploiting our goodwill and patience while prioritizing profits,” one tenant said.
Reiss refused to open the door for a Post reporter and did not answer his phone.
“It’s very disappointing,” one resident said, reflecting on the upcoming trial.
“We have to deal with his actions and the aftermath. It’s sad and horrifying. No one is going to help us, or at least no one is willing to help, and a lot of people are at risk.”
