Fort Myers man facing eviction says it's because of Santeria

Melissa Montoya | The News-Press

A Fort Myers man is being evicted from a senior housing complex for what the Fort Myers Housing Authority is calling violent, disruptive behavior, but the man says the issues stem from his practice of Santeria.

Mamberto Real, 68, has been given notice by the housing authority to vacate his one-bedroom home at the Bonair Towers on Halgrim Avenue.

Real said he plans to take the eviction process to court where a judge decides whether Real can or cannot stay in his apartment.

Real said he lost his job as a machinist in 2015. As a result, he became homeless. For two years, Real said, he lived in his car and took daily showers at the Salvation Army. He moved into the apartment in August.

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If the Fort Myers Housing Authority removes him from his home, where he pays $160 monthly to rent, Real said he will have to live in his car again.

Fort Myers Housing Authority Executive Director Marcia Davis declined to speak about the specifics of Real's case, but she said the eviction process gives Real the opportunity to bring forward a witness to speak on his behalf.

"If there are issues with the resident that get to the point of eviction there is a process that we do follow," Davis said. "It's based on upholding your lease and avoiding any behaviors that may be disruptive or cause safety concerns for any residents of that area. We want to make sure we are following our process and there are regulations that we have to follow."

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This is not the first time Real has gotten into trouble where he lives. In 2015, Real was arrested and accused of firing a flare gun at a neighbor during an argument. The charges were dropped, records show.

Real said that arrest is irrelevant to the situation he is in now.

The issues at the low-income senior housing apartments began in October when he received three non-compliance notices dated Oct. 11 for wearing a scary mask, throwing "holy water" in the dining room, "dancing inappropriately," and being observed "blowing white powder" toward residents.

Real is a practitioner of Santeria, which translates to "worship of saints." It is a tradition born in Cuba from the Yoruban people of western Africa and influenced by Catholicism. He keeps two sugar canes outside of his door for protection from evil, he said.

"I was dancing in the hallway," Real said. "I was listening to the Yoruba songs of my religion."

The white powder, Real said, is a plant-based substance known as cascarilla and is used for protection. His ritual, he said, is to blow it into the air outside of the apartment complex.

"They accused me that I blow it to somebody else," Real said. "That is not true."

But a few days later there was another complaint made against him by a maintenance employee that entered Real's home to fix his air conditioning.

Real said he was upset because the maintenance worker knocked on his door hard and broke the peephole.

"I told the man you cannot bang the door in that way because it's improper," Real said. "Look at what you did, you put the peephole on the floor."

According to a narrative of the incident, the worker filed a complaint that stated Real approached him in a "threatening manner, screaming and yelling — cursing at me."

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Real admits he used an expletive when he spoke to the worker.

A housing authority hearing was held Nov. 7. A day later, the decision to terminate Real's public housing assistance was upheld due to "violent, disruptive or criminal activity."

"I conclude that you display very aggressive, loud and disrespectful body language, your behavior towards others is unwarranted, unwanted and deemed threatening and your use of foul language geared towards a housing authority employee is behavior that is not welcome at any development that is owned and operated by HACFM (Housing Authority of the City of Fort Myers)," according to the findings of the housing authority's Deputy Executive Director Sherri Campanale, who was the hearing officer.

But Real said he thinks the decision is due to cultural differences and that the situation amounts to "an exaggeration of facts."

Living in his car was difficult, Real said. He doesn't want to go back to that.

The Rev. Israel Suarez, a Fort Myers Housing Authority commissioner, said he is unaware of Real's case.

"When those cases come before me, I can't react immediately without the facts," Suarez said.

Suarez said he would look into the issue.

As for Real, he said he is not a criminal.

"I just practice a different religion from them," he said.