State and Brunswick Police say a young Chelsea man suspected of bilking companies and individuals for well over $250,000 for items and services never delivered was arrested yesterday (Jan. 13) in Lisbon.   

According to Maine Department of Public Safety Spokesman Steve McCausland, Ervin Morrison III, 23, was tracked down of a home on Memorial St in Lisbon and taken into custody without incident.

Police have been looking for Morrison since last summer after receiving several complaints of services or products solicited on Craig’s List that were never delivered. Trooper Christopher Rogers said two Maine companies lost $132,000 in the swindle and expected the total losses in Maine will total $250,000. That number is expected to double, as additional complaints come in from out of state.

McCausland said a Florida man reported he lost $140,000 to Morrison in an investment scheme, and a woman in North Carolina said she paid Morrison $25,000 last week in the same scheme, but changed her mind and stopped payment before the check was cashed.

Among the charges Morrison is being held on is theft by deception, theft by unauthorized taking and a number of motor vehicle violations, including operating a motor vehicle after his license had been revoked, McCausland said. He made his first appearance in Kennebec Court in Augusta yesterday  and several other courts will be involved in the additional charges he faces.

The arrest warrants issued for Morrison are from several police agencies in Maine and Massachusetts.  Morrison was believed to have fled the state last year, but recently information from Oxford Police showed that Morrison was back in Maine, McCausland said.

Morrison was arrested Wednesday  by a team of Troopers and officers and detectives from Lisbon and Brunswick Police. Morrison is currently being held at the Kennebec County Jail on $1,000 cash bail, but the bail is expected to be increased as he appears in several other courts in Maine.

Investigators say the majority of the Morrison’s schemes on Craig’s List involved sales of firewood, wood pellets, logging, home repair, earthwork, vehicle transportation, real estate, and investments.  There is no indication he delivered on any of them, McCausland said  Investigators say anyone who thinks they may have been a been a victim of Morrison should contact State Police - Troop D in Augusta at 624-8947.

 

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