Residents of Southern California condo complex living in fear of neighbor

After months of scary incidents and vandalism, some residents of a Long Beach condo complex say they’re tired of living in fear of a neighbor.

Multiple people who live in the Gladys Avenue condo complex spoke with KTLA 5’s Sara Welch, saying that a man has threatened them and broken several windows of the homes in the building. Neighbors are afraid of what he will do next. Many of the condos are owned by the occupants, making it more difficult to move.

“Once or twice a month, he will come outside his apartment, break somebody’s window and back inside” said Desi Ambrozak, who lives in the complex. “His windows have been broken out for a very long time now.”

A woman who lives in one of the units says she carries a Taser with her out of fear for her safety. Ambrozak says the woman is scared of the man’s unpredictable behavior.

“They don’t feel safe going to get their mail,” he said. “They don’t feel safe taking their trash out. They feel like they’re constantly on guard.”

There have been several complaints filed about the man’s behavior. Neighbors say they have caught him urinating in common areas, smashing condo and vehicle windows, as well as verbally accosting residents.

The latest incident occurred last week when neighbors say the suspect broke several windows. The man left with Long Beach police officers but returned a short time later.

Four neighbors have moved out of the complex over the past three months because of the man’s behavior. David Lugo was packing his belongings on Saturday to relocate.

“This neighbor, he’s just been terrorizing us,” said David Lugo, who was moving out of his unit on Saturday. “Yelling, drugs, he screams like a child in there, obscenities and really bad words. He’s threatened us a bunch of times.”

Residents of the Gladys Avenue complex say the man has owned his condo for roughly 20 years, but only recently moved back into the unit. Multiple people who live in the building have filed restraining orders against the man.

The Homeowners Association for the complex is taking legal action to see what their rights are to deal with the unruly occupant.

Long Beach police have responded to the complex several times, but neighbors fear the man’s behavior will continue to worsen.

There have been several instances of violence and crime in the city of Long Beach in recent months, prompting several residents to speak out about the lack of accountability for perpetrators.

People living in a Laguna Beach neighborhood say they’re dealing with a similar issue. A man has been terrorizing the area for more than a year.

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