Saturday, April 04, 2009

Connecticut Contractor Charged With Defrauding Couple Out Of $66K For Home Improvement Work

In Trumbell, Connecticut, The Connecticut Post reports:
  • A Monroe contractor has been charged with defrauding a local couple of $66,000 for a home-improvement project. Jeffrey Picataggio, 40, of Countryside Drive, surrendered to police Monday after being told there was a warrant for his arrest. He was charged with two counts of second-degree forgery and released from custody after posting $10,000 bond.

  • According to police, Picataggio, owner of Pic's Carpentry Design, was hired Jan. 8 by a local couple to add a second-floor room to their Church Hill Road home. Picataggio, however, allegedly submitted duplicate bills for work he never performed, including electrical work, and did work that violated building codes. At one point, police said, he drilled holes in the roof of the couple's home and then told them it was leaking in an attempt to sell them a new roof.

  • The couple ended up paying Picataggio $66,000 and then another $35,000 to another contractor to fix the work Picataggio was supposed to have done, police said.

Source: Man charged in home fix-it scheme.