Victim Location 33579
Total money lost $2,200
Type of a scam Home Improvement
I hired a well-known carpenter from my hometown to build a porch on my parent’s new home. The carpenter was paid in full ($2,200) for materials & labor on Aug 22, 2019. Paying up front is not typically something I would do, but because he’s a long-time friend of the family, I trusted him to take care of them. The funds were sent directly to him via Western Union. It took a month (Sept 23, 2019) for him to finally get his son over to build the bottom of the porch. They were supposed to return the same week to complete the top since that’s a 2-man job, but have delivered nothing but empty promises (we’ll be here this day, we’ll be here that day, and so on and so forth). In the weeks before the bottom portion of the porch was built and every week (several times per week) since then, I’ve been contacting both he and his son via phone, text, and even leaving messages when they won’t take my calls…which is more often than not. My parents even went to his house last week and he lied to their face telling them he’d be there first thing that Friday, Oct 11, 2019. He’s yet to be seen or heard from. I’ve demanded a partial refund numerous times via messages left on his voicemail and text message, so that we can get someone reliable and most of all, TRUSTWORTHY, to come finish their project since the wood has now gone unprotected for weeks; however, he’s not taking or returning my calls.