Much of Brooklyn's "residential" offerings aren't legally residential. They're old commercial buildings that landlords have cheaply repurposed to get a piece of the rising demand in housing.

I lived in Bushwick for a year and a half, never met my landlord, and I'm sure the building was breaking at least a dozen laws, but it was relatively affordable so no one really asked questions.

"Illegal" apartments in converted warehouses are very common in Brooklyn. Supposedly, the city turns a blind eye to them. Once someone lives there, they can't be evicted, even if it's not a legal residence. So renovation works happen without a work permit.

At least, that's what my brother told me, who lived in such an apartment. It was an eccentric place, but everything seemed up-to-code.

Yes. That's why they told the anecdote.

Being in the elevator wasn’t the illegal part though.

Nor was moving stuff in it.

Only the occupation of a non-residential space residentially was.

The system is still broken, regardless of what you think of GP's actions. "You shouldn't steal our customers' passwords" isn't a clever response to being told that your customers' passwords have been stolen and sold for $50K.

The apartment was illegal, possibly not zoned for residential or not up to code. The act of helping someone move would not be illegal. He had every right to sue.