Family of 5 Plus Dog Accused of Squatting in Million-Dollar Maryland Home

iStock/Thinkstock(BETHESDA, Md.) — A former hedge fund manager, his wife, three kids and a pet dog have been accused of squatting in a seven-figure luxury home in suburban Maryland.

The five-bedroom Bethesda home includes “nanny’s quarters,” a “gourmet” kitchen, two-person whirlpool tub, custom closets and steam shower with a bench, according to its listing.

“The lock had been drilled out,” neighbor Charles Hill told ABC affiliate WJLA in Washington, D.C. “They even introduced themselves [to neighbors] and scheduled some sort of entertainment with neighbors…It’s just very bizarre.”

The property was first listed in May 2014 for over $1 million.

The Crombie family was settling into the home when the property’s real owner pulled into the driveway Aug. 30, Bethesda police told ABC News. He confronted the family and then called police.

The father of the family, James Crombie, declined to comment to WJLA from his smaller rental home in Kensington, a few miles away.

Crombie, 47, is the former head of hedge fund Paron Capital Management who was ordered to pay $35.6 million to his former partners after he allegedly lured them with false promises and falsified documents, the Delaware Supreme Court upheld in March 2013. Crombie had appealed a lower court’s ruling claiming it was unsupported by the record and the award of damages and attorneys’ fees were an abuse of judicial discretion.

He told Bethesda officers the home had been purchased for him by a consulting firm of which he was a principal member. But he had no sales contract or property title to prove his ownership, Bethesda police told ABC News.

Police forced the Crombies to vacate the residence the next day. He was charged with second and fourth-degree burglary, destruction over $1,000 and attempted theft over $100,000, according to court records. A lawyer listed as his private attorney in court records did not respond to a request for comment.

Neighbors said the family also had a dog, WJLA said.

“There were damages to indicate a dog was living there,” a spokeswoman for the Bethesda police told ABC News, though a dog’s presence isn’t stated in the police report.

Crombie could not be reached by ABC News. His day in court is scheduled for Tuesday.

The real homeowner declined to comment to ABC News, according to the property’s selling agent. The home was relisted for $950,000 in November.

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