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Moving into the residence back in 2020, the couple had reportedly initially refused to live in the accommodation for free when the offer was brought to them as part of an agreement of one of them working with the landlord. Their initial monthly rent was €800, but earlier this year, the landlord reportedly told them he would be doubling the rent to €1,600.

The three settled for €1,200 (and another €100 for utilities), with some conditions: that the landlord would start renovations by the end of February 2023, and that the contract is registered – so they could register their ID cards on the property.

By mid-August, the renovations had still not started, and the couple asked to reduce the rent back down to €800 and not do the renovations anyway. By the end of the month, instead, the landlord refused and demanded the keys back. One day later, the couple said he cut off their water supply… which led to them reporting him to the Police. Hours later, the power supply was also cut off – which led to their fish dying.

Later, the couple said they found out the the landlord had never registered their rental agreement with the Housing Authority. A report with Enemalta also turned up some worrying facts – their power could not be switch back on as it was an illegal supply connected to the landlord’s own property.

This constant to-and-fro between the tenants and the landlord bubbled to the surface yesterday, with photos publishing on social media showing a message sent to the couple saying “The game is over”.

The landlord had first cemented over the door’s lock… but by the time the two rushed to Siġġiewi, they found that the entire door had been cemented. All their pets had been locked inside, with the couple only managing to retrieve them several hours later in the evening.

“Where is the law, and where is the enforcement?” EU Nationals & Malta Residents Advisory Group founder Patricia Graham wrote on Facebook last night, sharing photos and updates from the scene that was unfolding.

“Look at what our landlord did,” the tenants can be heard saying in a video sent to Lovin Malta, showing the cemented door as one of them calls out for their dog on the other side. “The police need to come now.”

A police report and criminal complaint has already been filed against the landlord on behalf of the couple’s lawyers Jason Azzopardi and Kris Busietta, with the landlord now potentially being found guilty of ragion fattasi, which is essentially the illegal eviction of tenants. A fine that could be anywhere between €1,500 to €4,000 could also apply.

Have you ever seen anything like this?