Foreclosure Vigilantes Arrested

A California attorney who has been helping several evicted homeowners unlawfully regain entry into their foreclosed homes this month was arrested last week along with a Newport Beach man he helped break into his former home. Meanwhile, another family he helped do the same last week was ordered back out, and a third regained access.

Rene Zepeda, 72, tried to take back possession of the property that he says is rightfully his by breaking a side window with a hammer. As his wife Otillia looked on, police officers immediately arrested him and attorney Michael T. Pines.

HousingWatch wrote about Pines last week, when he had a locksmith successfully help Danielle and Jim Earl of Simi Valley temporarily regain entry into their former house (as covered in "Evicted Family Breaks Into Foreclosed Home"). The stay might also be short-lived for the Earls, however, as Friday the Ventura County Superior Court ordered them back out by Oct. 25.