It could be selective enforcement, but the point is there is no reason to assume it is. A NYC landlord is highly motivated not to renew a long-term rent-controlled lease that is, counter to the intent and letter of rent control laws, not held by a primary resident who was the original lessee or legal successor thereof. Doing so could easily be a matter of many tens of thousands of dollars a year (no exaggeration). Most landlords would not need any encouragement to terminate the lease (and start an eviction proceeding) upon discovering ANY case of rent-control fraud – they would not enforce this “selectively.” So why would anyone assume this was done on the instigation of the police or whatever? Just as likely that the landlord saw the guy’s name in the media, read that he was a professor in London, and put two and two together.
