They say, “You can’t fight City Hall” and “resistance is futile.” Don’t tell that to Kevin Albert Betha. Since 2018, he has been attempting to recover his family residence at 905 Belmont Avenue in West Philadelphia, which he alleges was stolen from him by an unscrupulous real estate agency in collusion with the City of Philadelphia. Betha claims the city said he owed back taxes on the property, but he possesses documents that disprove the city’s claims. Betha has lived in the house his parents purchased in 1976 since he was a teenager. The house was left to their children upon his parents’ decease, and Betha was living in the house and paying the taxes. Because he refused to swear an oath in Municipal Court when he appeared in court–due to his beliefs, the court declined to hear his case. The case was continued for several months.
In 2019, the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office posted an eviction notice on his property. He went downtown to straighten the situation out and, ultimately, ended up at the offices of GRB Law, the collection agency the city uses to recoup back taxes, liens, interest, and fines. He showed his documentation proving he had paid taxes for the years in question. The people at GRB told him they would send him a letter clarifying the situation.
Several months went by, and he didn’t hear anything from GRB Law. Later, Sheriffs deputies came to his home. Neighbors informed him the deputies were there, and when Betha and his uncle arrived, he saw a Ramsey’s moving van with men removing his furniture and possessions from the house.
The deputies informed him he wasn’t allowed to go into the house. Betha spotted two Philadelphia police officers up the street, and he went to them, and they accompanied him back to his house. Betha’s uncle told him to go downtown and get a copy of his deed, which he did. He returned, but by the time he returned, there was only one police officer there. Betha showed him his paperwork, and the officer left. Betha called his cousin, who is a locksmith, and they put new locks on the door to replace the locks the Sheriff placed on the door.
Later that evening, several police officers returned to the house, and Betha showed them the paperwork. How- ever, a sergeant arrived and told the officers to arrest him for trespassing and illegally being on the property. They took him to 55th and Pine. He stayed in jail for twenty- eight hours. After he was released, he returned to his house to discover he had been locked out.
The COVID lockdowns subsequently closed the courts, and for three years, Betha
was homeless, living in an abandoned house. According to Betha, both his home
on Belmont Avenue and his rental property at 4315 Westminster Avenue had been
fraudulently taken. When he finally went to court on the trespassing charges, his
court-appointed lawyer and the D.A. advised him he should take a plea. Betha refused because he suspected they were trying to trick him so he would have a criminal record, and the Real Estate agency and the city would use that to keep his properties. ,…
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