EXCLUSIVE Squatter has taken over my £90k home for two years and refuses to leave… and now she’s demanding I pay HER – it’s outrageous

• EXCLUSIVE: Irene Cox is desperate to get rid of former tenant Carmen Bonnici
• Ms Bonnici has not paid rent for 2 years and has racked up nearly £1,800 in bills
• The squatter has repeatedly claimed the house in Arriate, Spain is not fit to live in

A British pensioner is fighting a furious battle to kick a squatter out of her Spanish holiday home after they moved in two years ago and refused to pay a penny in rent since.

Irene Cox is desperate to get rid of former tenant Carmen Bonnici after she allegedly racked up nearly £1,800 in unpaid utilities.

Artist Ms Bonnici moved into the cottage in Arriate, near Ronda in December 2021, and after transferring one month’s deposit, has refused to pay up.

The squatter has repeatedly claimed the £90,000 house is not fit to live in, but has allegedly failed to let builders in to undertake repairs.

Mrs Cox, from Worcester, told MailOnline: ‘I’m worried my home is going to be trashed, all the stuff she was complaining about was outrageous.’

Irene Cox, a retired English teacher, is forced to pay for the electricity, water and other bills of her tenant who refuses to pay her

Carmen Bonnici, is refusing to pay rent, claiming the house has been inhabitable since she moved in – a claim the owners deny

The artist rented the cottage in Arriate, near Ronda (pictured), in December 2021, and after paying one month’s deposit has refused to pay anything since

Meanwhile videos from Ms Bonnici’s Instagram account show her dancing around and smiling inside the home.

She has also now declared herself as a ‘vulnerable adult’, making eviction all the more difficult under Spanish law.

According to her website her artworks sell for thousands of euros each, although it is not known if she has sold any recently.

In an email seen by MailOnline, she wrote to her landlord: ‘I know my rights. I know the law… unless you give me back my money now you can both go f*** yourselves.

‘As for the builders, if they set foot on this property as long as I’m living here then they are trespassing… if they come I will call the Guardia Civil.’

It comes after MailOnline this year revealed how criminal gangs of squatters are targeting second homes of British people in Spain, with some even using children as ‘props’ to try and shield themselves from eviction.

Article 47 of the Spanish Constitution states that ‘all Spaniards have the right to enjoy decent and adequate housing’ – a sentiment which has caused a legal loophole, making it extremely difficult for homeowners to remove squatters who have entered their properties.

Under Spanish law, squatters who have occupied a home for more than 48 hours and are deemed to have no other adequate housing in which to live cannot be evicted without a court order.

This process takes an average of 18 months, and can prove particularly costly with plaintiffs having to shell out for legal representation and bailiffs.

Brit Ms Bonnici dances around the home in a video posted to her Instagram account

Ms Bonnici is demanding money  for ‘damaged artwork’ from termites and water leakage

In the interim, the only way to remove squatters is to pay squatter removal firms, many of whom charge thousands of pounds to forcibly evict them.

Mrs Cox and her estate agent husband are now at their wits’ end after an attempt to pay her to leave also failed.

Despite taking fellow Brit Ms Bonnici to court to evict her, no date for a trial has yet been set.

To complicate matters, the tenant is demanding money from them for alleged ‘damaged artwork’ from termites and water leakage.

Mrs Cox said: ‘She’s obviously out to get everything she can.

‘As soon as she moved in she started making a list of complaints, the truth is the home was incredibly clean and in a good condition, our former tenant was there for years without a complaint.’

The former teacher continued: ‘She won’t allow us in, she actually refuses to open the door.’

Ms Bonnici said the house was ‘simply not habitable’ and that she was advised by police and the town hall to ‘stop paying rent’

Ms Bonnici claimed there are holes in the roof, dangerous wires and no functioning toilet or hot water

When contacted, Ms Bonnici said the house was ‘simply not habitable’ and that she was advised by police and the town hall to ‘stop paying rent.’

She claimed there are holes in the roof, dangerous wires and no functioning toilet or hot water.

When asked why, if it was so bad, she had stayed for two years, she added: ‘The landlord hasn’t given my money back so I can’t leave.

‘They said they would give it to me after I leave the house, but I know they won’t.

‘Since time has gone by, more artwork has been damaged. They’ve never offered to fix the termite infestation that has eaten most of my clothes. 

‘I’m in a vulnerable situation, I can’t move, I’m not financially able to, I don’t have any money. 

‘You can go from selling art for thousands of dollars to selling nothing.’

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