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By Marvin Charles 
1 hour ago
Cape Town – A black family who bought a rand 10 million mansion in luxurious Hout Bay is fighting to evict a white tenant who resided in the property before the previous owner sold it, resulting in a court battle to eject it.
Emilia Vollmer and her 11 family members said they were on the brink of wits after spending R200,000 in legal fees to try to remove Adrian Mitchell, who had been staying on the property with the previous owners.
Vollmer said: “We took possession of the house in September and then immediately began the eviction. He was already destined to leave, but because he knew that the owners had passed away, no one could force him to leave.
“When we took over the property, we told him to evict it and he said he would.”
Mitchell has been a tenant at the property since June of last year. According to court documents, he said he had ongoing legal disputes with his previous owner regarding the property.
He was forced off the property on Sunday by the family.
“We have maintained that it was not our intention to evict anyone. We offered you a country house that is only 15 meters from our house and you can stay on the property until we can legally evict you.
“We were asked to leave our property because moving him from the house to the cabin is considered an illegal eviction, even though today (yesterday) we argued in court that the cabin is part of the property,” Vollmer said.
The Wynberg Magistrates Court granted a provisional injunction on Monday.
The magistrate prohibited the Vollmer family from interfering with Mitchell while he was occupying the property until the eviction process is completed next year.
Vollmer said the family felt that the system had not considered their case.
“The legal system has failed us as a family and as landowners; we have been discriminated against, ”he said.
In his affidavit, Mitchell stated: “The defendant (Vollmer) interrupted my possession of the property on Saturday by trespassing on the property and usurping control of the premises in a hostile and aggressive manner, and ultimately dispossessing me of control of the property by force me to vacate under threat. “
The property measures around 3 000m² and consists of a sauna, swimming pool, country house and natural spring. The bailiff arrived and yesterday told the family to leave the property.
A confrontation between Mitchell and Vollmer and his family occurred after Mitchell appeared and began filming the confrontation. Cape Argus asked him about the allegations, but he declined to answer.
“My attorney has instructed me not to speak to anyone, so I have no comment,” he said. He then told Cape Argus to leave the premises and threatened to call the police.
Hout Bay Ward Councilman Roberto Quintas said he was aware of the matter.
“I learned Saturday afternoon of a situation in Hout Bay that is a civil matter between the landlord and the tenant… the courts have already ruled in favor of the tenant. The City cannot intervene, but will help if necessary. “
Cape Argus
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