New York City’s so-called “worst landlord” was punched in the face within hours of booking himself to Rikers Island on Friday and had to be briefly hospitalized.
And the residents of Daniel Ohebshalom’s dilapidated, rat-infested apartment complex can’t help but feel like he was expecting it.
“I had to pay for repairs to the kitchen out of my own pocket because the rats had invaded,” said Nellie, a 37-year-old nurse who lives on the ground floor of the Oheb Shalom building at 709 170th Street. told The News. I will post it on Sunday.
“It’s karma for him to get hit…God forgive me for laughing!”
“He’s not a good person. He’s not kind. He’s a very crazy person,” added Yovany Marte Lopez, 66, who has lived in the same building for 30 years.
“I’m glad this happened to him.”
The other two residents, neither of whom spoke English, smiled broadly when the third resident explained in Spanish what had happened to him. Some people gave thumbs up.
Police sources confirmed to the Post the attack happened Friday afternoon.
source of information told NBC New York It appears the unidentified inmate did not specifically target Oheshalom, who may have suffered facial bones and was briefly hospitalized.
Authorities brought him back to Rikers late Friday, the station said.
But whatever the motive, he had no sympathy for residents who had endured buildings filled with lead paint, cockroach infestations, flashing lights and black mold, according to the city’s housing authority.
But Mr. Ohevshalom’s refusal to fix nearly 700 blatant violations at his building at 705 and 709 170th Street did more than earn him the nickname “Worst Landlord.” do not have.
Earlier this month, he also received a ticket at Rikers that resulted in a two-month leave and more than $3 million in fines, officials announced.
City officials secured an arrest warrant on March 8 for failing to comply with a February 2023 civil contempt finding.
“The reason we’re going after this man and what he’s doing is because of the lives people have lived there. It’s terrible,” said Adolfo Carrion Jr., director of the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development. said at the time.
“People are dealing with mold, leaks, pests like rats and cockroaches, peeling paint, lead paint, etc.,” he added. “Their children are being exposed, as are the elderly. It’s time to stop this nonsense.”
Ohebshalom turned himself in Thursday, authorities said.
Carrion said this is about justice being served.
“New York City’s slumlords have been formally warned,” he exclaimed in a statement. “New York City landlords will not get away with putting our families in conditions that are dangerous, unhealthy, and completely uninhabitable.”
Several apartment residents told the Post they were excited to hear he was finally facing serious consequences.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Sonia Peralta, a 73-year-old woman who has lived at 705 for the past 44 years, said shortly after the warrant was issued.
“He should have been arrested a long time ago.”
She said the ceiling in her bathroom fell in two years ago, resulting in shoddy workmanship and the walls are covered in soot from a broken boiler.
She added that the heating and hot water are constantly out of order, rats and cockroaches have turned the building into a mini-motel, and a broken lobby door allows homeless people to wander around and shoot guns.
“We want to be treated like humans,” Peralta said.
“We want to see him in prison for a long time.”
The city’s Housing Authority first took action against Oheshalom in 2021 after its anti-harassment unit inspected and investigated the Washington Heights building, according to a statement.
Last January, the city moved both buildings into the Alternative Enforcement Program, a program that helps officials enforce codes and hold owners accountable, and the city made emergency repairs to address long-standing problems, according to the announcement. It has been made possible to deal with this.
City officials charged more than $48,000 in fees on the property as they performed emergency work to repair leaks, remove mold and install self-closing doors.
But Mr. Ohebshalom did not respond, leading to further lawsuits that included claims for contempt of housing authority, jail time, and civil penalties.
The Housing Court agreed, saying the landlord was in criminal and civil contempt of several court orders, consent orders and interim agreements.
The agency previously said the city has filed suit against Ohebshalom citing poor conditions at several other buildings.
But that is little consolation for some who still live in dire conditions.
“I have two children and my daughter is pregnant,” Lopez told the Post.
“My mother is 86 years old and she gets very cold,” she continued. “No heating, no hot water, no showers, no cleaning. A week later still no hot water! Very difficult.”
City sanitation worker Steve Rennis, 45, who lives in the building, said Ohebshalom’s arrest was “a good start,” but echoed Lopez’s concerns for the welfare of residents.
“OK, he went to prison, but what about us?” Lenis added, adding that she is unable to bathe her 81-year-old mother, who has cancer, because her boiler has broken down.
“I’m worried that because he’s in prison, they’ll think he’s responsible and nothing will happen,” he continued.
“It doesn’t help my mother who doesn’t have a fever. They haven’t solved anything.”
