Alleged Maine Home Improvement Scammer Indicted

Malcolm Stewart, the man who operated a business called Castle Builders out of Union Maine was indicted last month for theft by deception and an arrest warrant was issued with bail set at $50,000 cash.

The allegations according to a press release by the Maine Attorney Generals office include 57 construction projects Stewart agreed to complete that totaled approximately $400,000 that the Maine Attorney Generals office said he knew he would not be able to complete.

“In most of the transactions listed in the indictment, Stewart performed no work in return for the money, and in a few of the transactions, he performed only a minimal amount of substandard work.”

Stewart abruptly closed his business, Castle Builders without any notice to clients he was hired to complete home improvement projects for. He also left Maine, and moved to South Carolina.

According to a report by the Penbay Pilot, this week an attorney representing Malcolm Stewart has filed a motion in court to arrange a hearing for Stewart who plans to turn himself in, plead not guilty, and have his bail reduced.

Attorney General Frey has emphasized in the press release that much due diligence must be in place when hiring construction contractors.

"Maine does not license home construction contractors so consumers must proceed with caution when hiring a contractor. Also, read Chapter 17 of the Attorney Generals Consumer Law Guide, which has information on Maines law governing home construction and repair contracts, and what you can do if you're not satisfied with the contractors work."

CLICK HERE for additional tips that I wrote about recently to help reduce your chances of being scammed by unethical home improvement businesses.

Disclaimer - all persons are deemed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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