Huntington Park mom of 9 facing eviction after reporting pipe burst to landlord

Mom of 9 facing eviction after pipe explosion

A mom of nine is facing eviction after a landlord accused her of being responsible for a pipe burst. The pipe incident comes as the mom tells FOX 11, she had faced various other issued from her home.

LOS ANGELES COUNTY, Calif. - A Huntington Park landlord is captured on cell phone video telling his tenant, "You want the $2,500 …you gotta move out," and threatening to make her life miserable.

The tenant, Lucina Rangel, says she is being unjustly evicted after 11 years of paying rent on time.

Lucina Rangel says her troubles began on August 12 when a pipe burst on the second floor of her home, causing significant damage.

Lucina says she immediately notified the landlord but was soon given a lease termination letter on August 25, despite her efforts. The letter cited reasons for the eviction as "negligence, accumulated trash, destroying the property, and not notifying the landlord of the water leak."

"I've been living with water damage, roaches, rats… he's never put a single cent because I've taken care of everything in this house," Lucina explained, expressing her frustration over the landlord's lack of action.

Lucina claims that the landlord had been aware of the persistent water damage, promising repeatedly to re-pipe the house but never following through. The situation escalated when a 4.4 magnitude earthquake struck near Highland Park on August 12, turning a small leak into a major problem.

"It was raining in my kitchen, my laundry room, my bottom bathroom," Lucina recalled.

Despite notifying the landlord the next day, she says he didn't come by until nine days later, only to inform her that her lease was being terminated due to the property damage she allegedly caused by not giving him enough notice.

When asked about the situation, the landlord stated he wanted Lucina out because she "trashed the place."

However, Lucina vehemently denies this, insisting, "He's lying; I've taken care of his house."

As a mother of nine, Lucina now faces an uncertain future. She suspects the landlord is pushing her out to bring in a tenant who can afford higher rent. In the cell phone video, the landlord can be heard stating, "Huntington Park is not rent control, I can increase as much as I want."

A GoFundMe page has since been launched to help Lucina. Those looking to help can click here.