Joanna Bartholomew, the CEO and founder of O’Hara Development Partners, told Spotlight on Maryland outside a Baltimore home she had just revitalized that she was excited to finalize the property for sale to first-time homebuyers. She said that her exhilaration quickly turned to disbelief.

Alleged squatters took over her taxpayer-funded project, with one occupant eventually arrested on unrelated outstanding warrants during a tense multihour standoff with police.

“I was coming here around 7:00, 7:15 this morning. I was meeting one of my contractors here,” Bartholomew said Friday. “I saw a gentleman walking out of the house, and he didn’t look like anyone who was even a subcontractor of the guys that we hire.”

The celebrated community activist and redevelopment veteran who served on Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott’s transition team said that the man told her that he had been living in the East 22nd Street property.

“He said he has a lease,” Bartholomew said. “We did call the police. Now, here we are, finding out we have a full family in here, literally within the last 24 to 48 hours, (they) found their way inside the property.”

Officers from the Baltimore Police Department escorted a property management worker to the back door, so he could try to gain entry to the four-story row house. But the door was braced.

“Nah, man. Get off of my property,” a man said from a third-floor window. “I just talked to y’all. I just showed you my lease. I want to know what the problem is now?”

Police told the man that he had active warrants out. They also discovered that a female occupant was wearing an ankle monitor.

Officers prepared a battering ram and shield to breach the property’s door while waiting for authorization to proceed. Over an hour later, they still had not received the necessary authority to gain access to the home.

The scene’s commanding officer told the male occupant that they would serve the warrants regardless of the occupancy dispute. After a two-hour standoff, the man ultimately came out of the property’s front door, surrendered peacefully to police, and was placed into custody.

Spotlight on Maryland pressed the BPD on Friday night for details about the arrest.

“I can confirm that officers were called to the location for possible squatting,” Officer Vernon Davis, a BPD spokesperson, said. “During the investigation, they discovered that (a 34-year-old male) had an open warrant and was subsequently arrested.”

“However, the report did not specify the nature of the warrant,” Officer Davis added.

Spotlight on Maryland has been investigating social media-fueled squatting accounts across Maryland for over three weeks. These accounts allegedly connect occupants with properties for a one-time fee and provide them with a fraudulent lease.

As of Friday, Spotlight on Maryland has identified nine properties in Baltimore County and Baltimore City where similar social media users are mentioned in police reports, listed on alleged fraudulent leases or names overheard by property owners.

Mayor Scott told Spotlight on Maryland at City Hall over two weeks ago that there was an “active investigation” into the online accounts allegedly orchestrating and bragging about making money from selling, leasing and connecting individuals to “last resort” or squatter houses.

Dels. Ryan Nawrocki and Kathy Szeliga, both Baltimore County Republicans, sent a letter to Baltimore County Executive Kathy Klausmeier and Baltimore County State’s Attorney Scott Shellenberger, demanding arrests and a crackdown on online squatter networks.

“We are writing to request action to combat the recent rise of squatters in Baltimore County,” the state legislators wrote. “It is both a nuisance and a threat to the community when unauthorized people live in homes on fake leases made up by scam artists.”

“We ask that these scammers be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for their crimes so that they can send a message to anyone considering entering a squatter’s ring in Baltimore County,” Nawrocki and Szeliga added.

Neither Klausmeier’s nor Shellenberger’s offices responded late Friday night to Spotlight on Maryland’s request for comment.

Meanwhile, Bartholomew said that local and state laws must change rapidly to protect every corner of the state.

“I think that everybody, regardless of what side of the table you sit on, we all need to collectively come together and figure this out, or we are going to continue to start feeling the burnout from your committed community developers that want to do right,” Bartholomew said.

The property owner said that she also believes those responsible for organized social media networks illegally connecting individuals to properties should be held accountable promptly.

“They’re saying they gave somebody $2,800 cash,” Bartholomew said. “The (social media users) need to be held accountable. They’re only now communicating to the officers through text, saying they’re out of town, they’re not available to get on the phone.”

While the man was in police custody, the female occupant continued to live at the property Friday night. Police told Bartholomew she would need to resolve the matter through civil action to remove the remaining individuals.

“Trust and believe I will be making a lot of phone calls and emails to get this a great attention so we can hopefully get this matter resolved,” Bartholomew said.

Spotlight on Maryland is a collaboration between FOX45 News, WJLA in Washington, D.C., and The Baltimore Sun. Send news tips to gmcollins@sbgtv.com.