Landlord jailed after Columbus properties deemed 'unsafe for human habitation'

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- A Columbus landlord has been sentenced to jail for failing to maintain living conditions at his 32 rental properties, after city officials found several violations including rat infestations, leaking sewage and broken windows.

Joseph Alaura will serve 175 days in jail after he violated his probation from a 2018 case where he repeatedly failed to repair a fire-damaged duplex he owns in the Hilltop neighborhood, according to Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein. The city's code enforcement noted significant violations at the property during a March 2024 inspection and determined that the duplex remains unsafe for human habitation. 

"Once a problem landlord is on our radar, we will stop at nothing to hold them accountable to tenants and the city," said Klein. "In this case, the defendant continues to defy court orders and subject vulnerable residents to deplorable living conditions. That kind of brazen disregard for people and the law is unacceptable and the reason why we’re taking these aggressive punitive measures."

The city is arguing Alaura disregarded the court's order to maintain his rental properties. In recent months, probation officers conducted inspections of Alaura's Columbus properties and found numerous violations at 17 properties, two of which were vacated after being deemed unfit for human habitation.

One property at 698 Stewart Ave. was cited for 16 violations, including no electricity, gas or heat, leaking sinks and sewage lines, a roach infestation, and other parts of the property in disrepair. Another property at 1150 Olney Drive was cited for no heat, inoperable sinks, a rat infestation and extension cords running throughout the house.

Other properties owned by Alaura that officers inspected included violations for no water, rodent infestations, broken windows, plumbing issues, and a still-running furnace disconnected from the ducts in one of the homes. Alaura is to report to the Franklin County Jail on Friday to serve his sentence.