The High Court yesterday issued an order preventing a landlord from interfering with electricity and water supplies in a block of apartments housing African refugees.
Ms Justice Laffoy also granted an interim order restraining the landlord, Mr Patrick S. Coady, from interfering with his tenants, the refugees, in their lawful enjoyment of apartments located at Nephin Road, Cabra, Dublin.
The orders were issued after it was claimed the electricity and water supplies to the apartments had been cut off on Wednesday and Thursday of this week. It was also claimed that Mr Coady had accosted some of the refugees and taken keys of an apartment from the children of the refugees.
It was claimed that Mr Coady wanted the refugees out of the apartments because he was concerned their presence would affect the sale prospects of a block of apartments to be built behind the existing block.
The claims were made by Mr Noel Tynan, an auctioneer, of Lower Drumcondra Road, Dublin, against Mr Patrick S. Coady, of the Thatched Cottage, Riverstown, Rathfeidh, Tara, Co Meath.
Ms Justice Laffoy granted the orders and said they would remain in force until next Thursday.
In an affidavit, Mr Tynan said the proceedings concerned a lease of five apartments at Nephin Road. He said the lease was entered into on June 19th last between Mr Coady as landlord and himself, Mr Tynan, as tenant.
He said the lease was to commence on June 19th last and to expire on June 15th, 1998, and the rent was set at £2,400 a month. Mr Tynan said he signed the lease as tenant and it was also signed by Mr Alan Kelly, an employee of Cross Auctioneers, Ballyfermot, who had negotiated as the landlord's agent and who accepted a sum of £4,800 as being one rent and one month in advance.
Mr Tynan said he had paid the rent up to date. Having entered into the rental agreement with Mr Kelly, Mr Tynan said, he then had contact with the Eastern Health Board which had problems accommodating refugees from African countries. He made an arrangement with the board to accommodate the refugees in the apartments and the rent was to be paid by the board.
Mr Tynan said Mr Coady was told, through Mr Kelly, of the arrangement regarding the refugees and was agreed to by Mr Coady in advance of the refugees taking up their tenancies.
He claimed that, shortly after, a partner of Mr Coady's, Mr Martin Devaney, who owned the plot at the rear of the apartments secured planning permission and proposed to build apartments at the rear of the apartments housing the refugees.
Mr Tynan said he believed that Mr Devaney agreed with Mr Coady there might be difficulty selling the new apartments because there were refugees in the other apartments.
He claimed Mr Coady then began to put pressure on him to remove the refugees. He claimed that, around mid-August last, two men had approached his wife at their home in Drumcondra and intimated the apartments should be vacated and put his wife in fear.
He said he believed the same two men approached him at his office in Kimmage and asked him to remove the refugees, but he was reluctant to do so. He said the men informed him that they had a letter of authority from Mr Coady to remove the refugees from the apartments if they did not go voluntarily.
Mr Tynan said Mr Martin Devaney said to him that such a letter did exist although he (Mr Tynan) had never seen it. He said his solicitor later received a solicitor's letter on behalf of Mr Coady alleging that Mr Tynan had allowed too many people into the apartments in breach of the spirit of the lease agreement.
Mr Tynan said he met Mr Coady who told him that he wanted the apartments cleared of the refugees as their continued presence would affect the sale prospects of the apartments being built.
Last Friday, he said, he met Mr Coady to pay the rent due and to give him the keys of an upstairs apartment which had become vacant. He said Mr Coady refused the rent and said he was looking for £6,000 rent for November and December. Mr Tynan said the December rent was not due until the 19th and he refused to pay £3,000 and said the rent agreed was £2,400.
He claimed the water to three apartments occupied by African refugees was turned off on December 10th at 1.30 a.m. and the electricity was cut off on the following day at approximately 6.30 a.m.
He claimed Mr Coady had also accosted some of the tenants and taken keys to one apartment from the children of one of the tenants. He claimed the tenants had managed to restore the electricity supply but he believed the water was still cut off.