five apartments, and described the first floor of the Building as containing an office on the left
and an apartment on the right, noted that each had a bathroom, and testified that only back area,
referred to as the Apartment, contained a kitchen. He confirmed that the first floor and that there
were 2 apartments on the second floor and two on the third floor, and that nobody occupied the
basement. At the close of his testimony, petitioner rested.
Eight witnesses testified on respondent's behalf: Respondent, Araceli Cedillo
("Cedillo"), his wife; Miguel Navla ("Navla"), the tenant of Apartment 2R in the Building;
Jessica Vaquero ("Vaquero"), another occupant of Apartment 2R; Rafael San Pedro Medina
("Medina"), a former tenant of the Building; Francisca Liriano ("Liriano"), another former tenant
[*3]of the Building; Joe Pacheco, a paralegal at Brooklyn Legal
Services; and Mendel Farkas.
Liriano was the first to testify, and stated that she had lived apartment 1A, on the
first floor of the building, facing the street in front of the Building, for part of 2006, before
moving to an apartment in the basement of the Building. Liriano presented, and the court
accepted into evidence, numerous copies of receipts, some of which she asserted were receipts
for rent paid for the first floor apartment and others which she asserted were rent receipts for the
basement apartment. The court also admitted into evidence Liriano's lease for apartment 1A in
the Building, commencing on February 1, 2006, and expiring on January 31, 2007, and reserving
a monthly rent of $900. Liriano then presented, and the court admitted, a Verizon bill dated
March 5, 2008, for phone service to the first floor apartment at the Building.