GIBSONTON, Fla. – Sunny and Nataliya Sia purchased property located in Gibsonton, Florida in 2014. In 2017, their property became the next-door neighbor of a 73-year-old home buyer who allegedly became their worst nightmare.
The Sia’s primary home on their parcel boasts nearly 4,000 square feet while additional structures provide residential rental income. The total parcel they own stretches almost two acres and extends to the Alafia River.
They filed a lawsuit against their neighbor, James Knight, on March 31, 2020, describing a harrowing tale of alleged harassment, destruction, and death threats that they say began after they refused to sell Knight their property.
In November 2020, the Sias moved into the property’s primary residence after a few years of conducting renovations that began in 2018. Knight had propositioned them that he wanted to buy their property because it had “better trees and a better view,” according to the lawsuit.
When they rejected his proposition, he became aggressive once they started 2018 renovations.
The neighbors share a TECO power line, and due to ongoing renovations, the Sias ordered a temporary cable line that was installed. But when it was time for a permanent cable to be installed underground, Knight refused to let the TECO technician install it, refusing access to an electric utility pole.
He then told the technician, “he would shoot him”, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit also says that Knight allegedly side-swiped one of the Sias’ rental tenants walking alongside the road. The tenant’s shoulder was struck by a side mirror of Knight’s truck.
In September 2020, Knight allegedly entered the Sias’ property without permission, removed their chain link fence, and destroyed plants and landscaping.
He then erected a new fence along the Alafia River, which prohibited the Sias’ from accessing their portion of their parcel adjacent to the river. The Sias’ decided to de-construct Knight’s fence, which resulted in Knight threatening to shoot husband Sunny Sia.
The Sias’ then built an opaque, six-foot-high fence made of sheet metal which was secured by metal fence posts buried four feet underground and anchored by 60 pounds of concrete.
But in January 2021, Knight took a sledgehammer and started destroying the fence. Nataliya Sia confronted Knight, who had placed portions of her fence in his truck, but she was threatened with bodily harm.
Law enforcement told Knight to return the fence materials to the Sias, but he still kept portions for himself, telling the Sias they had no right to erect the fence in the first place.
According to the lawsuit, the Sias found four guava trees on their property that once thrived, dead.
On February 21, Knight stole the Sias’ shrubbery, bushes, and other landscaping. When the Sias told him he had no right to enter their property, he allegedly threatened to kill them.
Knight is also accused of provoking the Sias’ two dogs, accused of yelling at them, aggravating them by striking the fence, spraying them with water, and threatening to throw rocks at them. He defends himself by saying the Sias are infringing on his property, as well as easement restrictions.
The Sias are pleading for a declaratory judgment by the court regarding their parcel’s boundary rights and rights to TECO electric accessibility.
In the meantime, Knight’s conduct has worsened, according to the Sias’ attorney, Pamela Jo Hatley, P.A., of Tampa. She said, “On April 7, he again removed some of the Sias’ fence. There was a physical attack…Nataliya Sia was attacked with a rake.”
Hatley described Sia’s injuries as “black eyes and scratches.” She indicated that deputy sheriffs arrived on the scene, allegedly only to find that Knight would not answer his door. It was surmised by Hatley that likely, previous visits on the neighbors’ spats were considered civil, not criminal issues, although Knight was more than once accused of making death threats.
Hatley also indicated that legal descriptions of the properties contained in the deeds indicate such descriptions are consistent. She said that although she has not seen Knight’s land survey, she doesn’t believe a boundary discrepancy among the documents exists.
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