What started with a knock on the door and an offer to repair driveways in disrepair ended with Caledonia Police arresting three people.
TMJ4’s Tahleel Mohieldin spoke with one homeowner in Caledonia who said he was duped and a representative from the Caledonia Police Department (CPD) who said that resident was just one of about 50 victims across multiple states.
The 82-year-old Caledonia man wanted to remain anonymous but told Mohieldin that after seeing a group of people doing asphalt work on his neighbor’s driveway, he checked out their work.
"It looked pretty decent,” he said, so the 82-year-old hired those workers. However, he said once they got started on his driveway he began noticing the red flags.
“Every time they turn around, they wanted to borrow something,” he recalled. “(The group’s leader) said 'don’t be out here watching us because you know the smell, we got protection. We take some drugs to protect us.'"
The homeowner said he and other neighbors grew more suspicious when the workers wanted to be paid in cash only. That’s when one of them decided to call Caledonia Police. Meanwhile, the 82-year-old's driveway was half done.
Caledonia Police told Mohieldin they’ve connected the men arrested to dozens of similar cases across the United States, noting that the group was charging between three to 16 thousand dollars for their services.
Watch: Caledonia man says workers repairing driveway were illegitimate, police arrest 3
“The leader was a good talker, let’s put it that way,” the homeowner said. “Every other sentence was a lie.”
While the 82-year-old said he didn’t have to pay anything upfront before police intervened, he was supposed to pay roughly $4,000 for the work.
To get the work done right, officials with CPD said the homeowner will likely be out much more. They said a legitimate contractor would charge first to undo the damage done before they can begin anew.
They also noted contractors typically install about 4 inches of asphalt while the workers arrested only paved about a half inch and did not prep the surface.
Caledonia Police are urging people to properly vet contractors before they hire them to do work, especially if they show up at your door.
They said you should check permits, make sure they have the right equipment, watch for misspellings or poor grammar on contracts or their website, and confirm they have a business address.
They also said it’s important to get quotes from local contractors before committing to services.
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