Neighbors demanded action after man returned home to land he bought in 1991 to find $1.5 million house on it
- A man was left furious when he discovered a $1.5 million house had been built on his land
- His consent had been hijacked by a scammer
- Locals in the area had called for action to be taken to resolve the issue
Published on Jul 10, 2024 at 8:08 PM (UTC+4)
by Ben Thompson
Last updated on Jul 11, 2024 at 12:29 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
Neighbors issued a call for action after a man returned to his plot of land to find that a $1.5 million house had been built upon it.
Dr Daniel Kenigsberg purchased the land in 1991 because it was near his childhood home in Fairfield, Connecticut.
Although he had been approached many times over the years, he’d always declined to sell it.
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The shocking story of how a $1.5 million house ended up on his land
It was Dr. Kenigsberg’s hope that he would one day pass the land down to his family.
But he was left stunned when a friend called him up and informed him that construction was underway on the land.
By the time he got back to Fairfield from Long Island, New York, a four-bedroom house had already been erected.
He soon discovered that the land had been ‘sold’ to Sky Top Partners LLC for $350,000 in October 2022.
Dr Kenigsberg insisted that this sale had been made without his knowledge.
Someone had imitated him using forged papers and signed off on the sale.
The scammer was reportedly working from South Africa.
He sued the firm on nine counts, seeking compensation of up to $2 million.
The residents of Fairfield speak out
It’s not just Dr Kenigsberg who is concerned about this development – some of the locals aren’t too happy about it either.
Speaking to a local news outlet, one neighbour said: “People just keep driving by.
“They wanna see what’s going on. Take a look at the house. And it just causes traffic.”
Another said: “I really just hope everyone involved gets what they need, because it seems like there are two victims in this case.”
The house was recently sold, just a year after Dr Kenigsberg filed his lawsuit.
It sold to the New Haven couple, who were originally interested in it, for $1.45 million.
The court ultimately awarded Kenigsberg an undisclosed sum of money whilst also allowing the builders to finish and sell the home.
Kenigsberg hopes that by speaking out publicly, he can make people more aware.
“If you live in California and you have land in Vermont, you’d better have somebody keeping an eye on it,” Kenigsberg told CTInsider.
Ben Thompson
Ben got his start in journalism at Kennedy News and Media, writing stories for national newspapers, websites and magazines. Now working as a freelancer, he divides his time between teaching at News Associates and writing for news sites on all subjects.
