A 75-year-old man experienced a stress-induced heart attack after discovering that his Arkansas home had been taken over by two squatters who used Google to learn how to claim someone else’s property.
Kelly DeShields, 54, and Matthew Villagran, 46, had been squatting in Gary Brankel’s Maysville residence for at least a month, under the belief that it had been unoccupied for years.
Brankel had been staying at a treatment facility to recover from a medical issue. When he returned on May 30, he found the couple illegally occupying his home.
According to a probable cause affidavit, DeShields allegedly claimed ownership of the house by following instructions she found on Google. The document stated, “She found information on the internet that led her to believe she could obtain the property by paying the property taxes and maintaining the residence and land.”
DeShields presented a receipt from the revenue office in Gravette to deputies at the Benton County Sheriff’s Office, showing that she paid $162 in assessment fees on May 1 for Brankel’s home. However, she admitted that no one at the revenue office told her she could occupy the property.
The couple is also accused of burning Brankel’s personal documents and home décor after falsely claiming the home. Deputies discovered a “fresh” burn pile on the land containing several of Brankel’s destroyed items. The stress from these events caused Brankel to suffer a heart attack, leading to his hospitalization. His current condition is unclear, but he confirmed that he did not recognize DeShields and Villagran and had never given them permission to occupy his home.
DeShields and Villagran were arrested on June 5 and charged with burglary. They are currently in custody at the Benton County Detention Center, with DeShields held on a $25,000 bond and Villagran on a $15,000 bond.
