NJ Eviction Moratorium Created Nightmare For Seaside Landlord

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, NJ — For thousands of New Jersey families, the state's moratorium on evictions during the coronavirus pandemic has been the only thing standing between them and homelessness.

But that moratorium, signed in April 2020 by Gov. Phil Murphy, cost one Seaside Heights landlord $130,000 in lost income and property damage, and created concerns for his family's safety.

It also led to criminal charges for the man who had moved in during the fall of 2019, then refused to leave.

"This has been months of total mental torture and financial distress," said Guy Madsen, who lives in North Jersey and has a summer home in Ocean County. "That is not what Murphy wanted to protect."

The moratorium on rental evictions was extended last week for New Jersey families who are still financially in dire straits. The extension, which lasts until Dec. 31, protects those who make less than 80 percent of the median income in their particular area. The state is trying to get money into the hands not only of families that are hurting so they can catch up on rent, but also to landlords who are hoping and waiting to recover income lost during the pandemic.

For Madsen, it was months of summer income lost for good.

Aaron Gibson, 40, of Manchester, has been charged with two counts of terroristic threats, harassment, criminal mischief, and theft by unlawful taking, according to complaint summonses filed by Seaside Heights police.

He is accused of threatening the lives of Madsen and Madsen's family in addition to the damage to the house that included destruction of the water heating system, holes in the walls, flooring damage caused by the water left running for days and throwing away Madsen's cable boxes for the unit. Gibson went so far as to remove a window from the house, Madsen said.

A phone number for Gibson has been disconnected. Attempts to determine the name of the attorney representing Gibson in the criminal case were unsuccessful. The Ocean County Office of the Public Defender declined to provide any information on whether the office was representing Gibson.

Home for the winter

Gibson started renting from Madsen in October 2019. It was supposed to be a winter rental, as Madsen has rented the property to families for the summer for years, he said.

When the pandemic hit in early 2020, the lockdown extended past Gibson's lease, which was due to end April 23, 2020, Madsen said.

In May 2020, as pandemic restrictions started to loosen enough that summer rentals were allowed, Madsen said he started contacting Gibson about moving out of the rental, saying he had people who had booked vacation rentals and were looking to use the weeks they had booked.

Madsen compiled dozens of text messages from Gibson in a document he emailed to a Seaside Heights police detective, who later filed the criminal charges against Gibson based in part on the text messages. Madsen forwarded that email and the text message attachments to Patch.

Those text messages show Gibson stalled initially when Madsen asked to show the house to prospective summer renters, saying he didn't want people in the house because of concerns about Gibson's girlfriend contracting the coronavirus.

Finally, on May 16, 2020, he told Madsen he was not leaving:

"This weather is beautiful i can see y someone would pay so much to stay here for the summer. I'm very excited to b here for the summer," a text message included in the package Madsen provided to Seaside Heights police said.

In the text messages in that package, Gibson repeatedly cited Murphy's eviction moratorium as giving him license to stay. And he taunted Madsen, telling him he received his federal stimulus check, then telling Madsen he wouldn't see a dime of it.

Those texts also show Madsen tried to negotiate with Gibson, even going so far as to offer to pay a security deposit for Gibson to move elsewhere. But Gibson declined. Things worsened after Madsen told Gibson in the texts that he was violating the terms of the lease, which said Gibson could not have overnight guests or pets. Gibson told Madsen in those texts that his girlfriend and her daughter stayed with him at least part of the week.

Seaside Heights police records show they were called to the property on a number of occasions between April and December 2020, including a June 2020 evening when Gibson called because a group of teens had gathered outside the rental, chanting for him to leave. Madsen said the teens had scraped and saved to rent the house after their senior prom.

Court steps in

Because Gibson's winter lease had ended, Madsen was able to seek an ejectment order, which differs from an eviction, to have Gibson removed from the house. The process took time, however, and the situation deteriorated over the next several months, with Gibson repeatedly texting Madsen, saying he would retaliate.

"I truly suggest u not try to attack me figuratively or physically Bc i promise u will regret it," another text from the package Madsen provided to police and to Patch said. "The day u come in here will b a nightmare. I have nothing to lose !!! This 100% is a promise. I won't deny anything i do or can give a f--- who sees this ... ur worker will have plenty of work for wks."

In December 2020, the Ocean County Sheriff's Department served the ejectment order.

Gibson had left the premises before the sheriff's office arrived, Madsen said, and then taunted Madsen by text message about what they would find inside. The sheriff's department had to use a ladder to enter the house through a window, Madsen said, because Gibson had barricaded the front door using metal brackets and a 2x4.

According to the text messages in the package, Gibson offered to sell a garage door opener that belonged to Madsen's house to Madsen for $500, saying it was the only way into the house.

According to the complaint filed by police, there was extensive damage, including holes in the sheetrock, furniture that had been cut with a knife, and significant damage to the flooring. The thermostat was removed and wires cut, a window removed, and the complaint alleges he threw out Cablevision cable boxes that were registered in Madsen's name.

Madsen said the cable company sent him to collections over the boxes, a situation that took months to address.

"My plumber found two pieces of chicken cutlets hidden behind the baseboard covers," Madsen said.

Madsen said he lost $65,000 in income from the loss of the summer rental use; the repairs to the house cost him another $65,000, he said.

Threats and charges

The threatening text messages were more concerning, Madsen said. According to the criminal complaint, Gibson texted threats to kill Madsen, his wife and his son would be killed. He was charged with three counts of terroristic threats, according to the criminal complaint.

The criminal complaint quoted some of those threats, including one about Madsen's son: "He a duck in a pond. Jus waiting for the green light." The criminal complaint said Gibson followed up with a text message with a photo of Madsen's son's car.

Gibson finally turned himself in on the charges in June, Seaside Heights police confirmed.

Madsen was able to get the house repaired and back in use for the 2021 summer season, but the criminal case against Gibson still is in the early stages.

"This guy stole my house with my property in the house," Madsen said. "He taunted us in text messages that it would take months to get the house back on market. It did."

"It's a shame the moratorium protects bad actors," he said.

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