An evicted Bermuda Housing Corporation (BHC) tenant was re-arrested on Tuesday after he broke into the North Shore Road apartment that had been the centre of a tense stand-off on Monday morning.

And BHC manager Vance Campbell stressed that the quango was well within its rights to evict him.

Mr. Graham threatened to burn the one-bedroom house down when bailiffs came to enforce the eviction and Police were called.

After a two-hour stand-off, attended by an ambulance, several Police officers and a fire truck, he left the property voluntarily and was arrested.

Eyebrows were raised at the timing of the eviction, coming as it did in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Fabian which left hundreds of people temporarily homeless due to extensive roof damage.

Mr. Campbell said on Tuesday that the timing was unfortunate but a coincidence - possession had been granted by the court in early April, he said, but an appeal by Mr. Graham, and the fact that BHC wanted to give him an opportunity to sort out the debt, delayed execution of the order.

"We really don't see how one is related to another," Mr. Campbell said.

"The fact that you are not paying your bill has nothing to do with a hurricane."

He added that efforts to get Mr. Graham to stick to an agreed payment plan had failed. He said BHC had received at the most $1,800 since April and had allowed the arrears, now estimated at $9,000, to grow since April.

"I think it's unfortunate," he said of Monday's incident. "One, because he placed himself in danger as well as the property in danger - and possibly others, including my staff."

The Housing Corporation was informed last week that the Supreme Court had dismissed Mr. Graham's appeal, and it went ahead with the eviction.

"He was informed last Friday that only upon payment of the full arrears would we give consideration to stopping the eviction," Mr. Campbell said.

Mr. Graham's debts swelled by an extra $3,000 because of legal fees incurred by the Corporation.

"We do charge the client for certain costs associated with the legal process if we go that route. Basically we go that route if they fail to respond.

"They have the option of making a payment plan and they have to adhere to that plan - there was a court order that Mr. Graham failed to fully comply with."

Yesterday the Housing Corporation was informed that Mr. Graham had broken into and re-entered the boarded up property.

Police did not respond to queries by press-time and it is unclear why he was still not in Police custody, but, The Royal Gazette understands, he was promptly re-arrested.