D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb recently filed a lawsuit against a local property manager for what his office alleges was the property manager’s part in fostering a hostile housing environment for Black female tenants.
The 15-page lawsuit, filed in D.C. Superior Court on Jan. 31, alleges that UDR, Inc., the property manager violated the District of Columbia Human Rights Act (DCHRA) and the Consumer Protection Procedures Act (CPPA) when it knowingly allowed Gueorgui Iskrenov, a white male tenant, to repeatedly harass and yell racial epithets at Black female tenants at Waterside Tower Apartments in Southwest D.C.
In court filings from the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) obtained by The Informer, the tenants filing the suit against UDR are identified as Ms. G. and Ms. M.
In 2021, Ms. G and Ms. M filed housing discrimination complaints with the D.C. Office of Human Rights (OHR), alleging that UDR allowed Iskrenow to carry on with his attacks because of their race and sex. OHR found probable cause for discrimination and referred the case to the D.C. Office of the Attorney General.
In their lawsuit, OAG is seeking a jury trial and, ultimately, a declaration that UDR violated DCHRA and CPPA, an injunction prohibiting UDR from making such violations, restitution and damages for victims, and civil penalties.
“Residents in the District of Columbia are legally entitled to live in homes free of persistent, hostile, discriminatory behavior, and it is against the law for property managers to facilitate a hostile housing environment,” Schwalb said.
“Waterside Towers tenants made every effort to alert UDR leadership of Gueorgui Iskrenov’s disgusting, hateful, and dangerous behavior, and yet UDR stood by silently as its tenants suffered pervasive, traumatizing harassment,” he continued. “The Office of the Attorney General will continue to aggressively enforce laws designed to protect tenants from such egregious misconduct.”
Several Months of Harassment, and No Response
Last year, a jury found Iskrenov, then 33, guilty of bias-related assault after a three-day trial in D.C. Superior Court.
Ms. G. and Ms. M., according to the lawsuit, notified Waterside Towers Apartments on separate occasions about Iskrenov’s threats of physical violence and yelling of racial slurs.
Such criminal activity, according to the lawsuit, violates a crime-free housing addendum in Waterside Towers Apartments leases.
Mrs. M Deals With Racism, Shoving, Violent Threats
In April 2020, just weeks after D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) declared a public health emergency, Ms. M. made initial contact with an unmasked Iskrenov while riding the elevator with him and his pit bull. She attempted to leave the elevator after the pit bull jumped on her. According to the lawsuit, Iskrenov then blocked her. After Ms. M. forced her way out of the elevator, Iskreov yelled “Black b—h,” “n—-r,” “c–t” and “Black Lives Matter n—-r.”
According to the lawsuit, UDR didn’t follow up with Ms. M’s complaint, even after Iskrenov accosted Ms. M. again in front of a UDR employee. That incident ended with Ms. M. calling the police. Throughout the next several weeks, Iskrenov, on separate occasions, shoved Ms. M. and drove past her in the building parking garage while forming his hand into the shape of a gun and pointing it at her.
Ms. M. remained unsuccessful in her attempts to petition UDR for assistance, with UDR delaying meetings and forwarding her emails to their attorney. This happened even as she collected Iskrenov’s name and apartment number on her own. The harassment continued under UDR’s watch, the lawsuit alleges, until October 2020, when Iskrenov voluntarily moved out of Waterside Towers Apartments.
Ms. G. Tells Her Story
Less than three months before leaving Waterside Towers Apartments, Iskrenov launched a similar campaign against Ms. G, who by that time had been living in the complex for two years.
During the summer of 2020, Iskrenov nearly struck Ms. G. with his car when he, according to the lawsuit, accelerated toward her as she was crossing in a pedestrian crosswalk. Shortly after, he rolled down his window, yelled racial slurs at Ms. G, and spat in her face.
Ms. G. verbally reported the incident to UDR and the police on the same day. Ten days later, after receiving no response, Ms. G. circled back with an email to four members of UDR’s management staff. She described her July 20, 2020 encounter with Iskrenov, provided his name and identified his vehicle.
Days later, UDR’s attorney followed up requesting that future correspondence goes to them.
Iskrenov was later arrested and ordered to stay away from Ms. G. Even so, he continued to harass her. The lawsuit mentions an August 2020 incident during which Iskrenov approached Ms. G. while she was talking to another neighbor, stood directly in front of her, glared at her, and paced back and forth in front of her several times.
Ms. G and her representative at the Equal Rights Center subsequently reached out to UDR’s attorney about Iskrenov’s ongoing harassment. They also requested a change in apartments, all to no avail.
An OAG staff member told The Informer Ms. M. and Ms. G. are filing separate suits against UDR and have been advised not to speak to the press. The Informer unsuccessfully attempted to gather comment from UDR.