Teen squatters brutally murder woman: Letters to the Editor — March 26, 2024
The Issue: The brutal slaying of a woman allegedly by two squatters living in her Manhattan apartment.
If there was ever a case for bringing back the death penalty, it’s certainly that of the two despicable squatters Halley Tejada and Kensly Alston (“Slay vic found in trash bag,” March 24).
The pair allegedly not only took over Nadia Vitels’ Manhattan apartment but also beat her to death and brutally stuffed her body in a duffel bag when she discovered their presence.
No consequence is too great for them, and life in prison would be far too lenient. These two lost all their rights when they allegedly took Vitels’ life. They serve no purpose in our society other than that of parasites. We should give Vitels’ family some sort of closure and the justice they so deserve.
Bert Wedemeyer
Brooklyn
File this recent slaying with crime in our subways, fare evasion and general harm towards law-abiding citizens.
There is the feeling of an uphill fight in everything about this state. Where are the elected representatives? I won’t say “our” because they have not been for “us” for too long of a time.
Tony Giametta
Oceanside
It is unacceptable that individuals like Tejada and Alston were able to illegally occupy a property and allegedly commit such a heinous act of violence.
Their arrest in Pennsylvania serves as a reminder of the serious consequences of allowing squatters to exploit legal loopholes and evade accountability for their actions.
I am also dismayed by the lack of action from progressive lawmakers to address the loopholes that enable squatters to take advantage of property owners.
Squatters’ rights should not supersede the rights of property owners or compromise public safety. It is imperative that our legislators take decisive action to strengthen laws and ensure that justice is served for victims of these crimes — like Vitels.
Arthur Gutman
Great Neck
This has a simple solution: Prohibit squatters’ rights, preventing things like this in an instant.
It is no one’s business what a person does with his legally owned property or whether the owner lives there or not, as long as taxes are paid.
Storm Destro
Bayonne, NJ
The Issue: The attack on a Moscow theater allegedly committed by members of the terrorist group ISIS.
While Mark Toth & Jonathan Sweet’s credentials entitle them to serious consideration, they may nonetheless be wrong in suggesting that the recent Moscow concert venue attack was orchestrated by Vladimir Putin for political purposes related to the war in Ukraine (“False Flag?”, PostOpinion, March 25).
ISIS has independent motives for this action. Russia supports the Assad government in Syria, has multiple air bases there and maintains two naval bases on its Mediterranean coast. This geopolitical positioning threatens ISIS’ Islamic militia, which opposes Assad and desperately wants a comeback.
Stanley Rubin
Fresh Meadows
This latest event sounds suspiciously like the series of apartment building bombings that occurred in 1999 in Russia, used as justification for Russia’s second war on Chechnya.
The prime minister of Russia at the time was Putin. The investigation went on for months, during which period people began to ask too many questions. Some of them, like Alexander Litvinenko, were assassinated.
Putin is now bogged down in an unpopular war and needs to divert attention. Putin’s “veracity” is therefore a bit questionable.
Andrew Macdonald
Fanwood, NJ
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