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Single mom loses $20K to transnational contracting scheme
A Worcester County woman is warning other homeowners about how a professional encounter quickly turned into $20,000 down the drain.
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Single mom loses $20K to rampant contracting scheme: ‘I'm one of those victims'
The flier left hanging on her front door was perfectly timed. Just one day earlier, Liz Pereira had discovered water seeping into the basement of her Millbury, Massachusetts, home. The leak had damaged drywall and soaked her daughter’s belongings. According to the advertisement from Landmark Masonry and Construction, the business had 25 years of experience and boasted positive online reviews….
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Contractor fined for illegally selling dogs from Mass. home
A Fall River contractor already accused of taking customers’ money and not finishing projects is now accused of selling dozens of puppies from his home without a license.
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‘Christmas puppies': Contractor fined for illegally selling dogs from Mass. home
A home improvement contractor who was already feeling the heat from unhappy customers is now facing thousands of dollars in fines from a state agency tied to allegations of illegally transporting and selling puppies out of his Fall River, Massachusetts, home. Larry Westgate imported dogs from Pennsylvania without the required medical certificates from a veterinarian, according to an enforcement action…
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‘Terrifying': Transnational scammers accused of impersonating engineer on home project
Dan O’Connor remembers getting the voicemail and feeling confused. The structural engineer has more than 30 years of industry experience works on large transportation projects for state agencies and municipalities. According to the message, there were questions about a report he’d supposedly written about a home in Malden, Massachusetts. “I had zero idea what they were talking about,” O’Connor...
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Transnational scammers accused of impersonating engineer on home project
Authorities are warning homeowners about a sophisticated contracting scam by a transnational criminal organization.
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Customers out thousands of dollars fume over contractor's bankruptcy
More homeowners are speaking out about a business owner who they say collected payments for projects and didn’t finish the jobs. Customers even formed a private group on social media to gain strength in numbers and try to hold the contractor accountable.
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‘He should go to jail': Customers out thousands fume over contractor's bankruptcy
Becky Levesque returned from a business trip in April 2022 and discovered the deck at her Freetown, Massachusetts, home had been demolished. “I was really confused,” Levesque recalled. That’s because Levesque and her partner, Leo McDonough, had hired Larry Westgate of All Phases Renovations to reface the existing structure, not build a new deck from scratch. Other red flags quickly…
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Denied again: Judge nixes pool contractor's request to lower bail
For the second time, the owner of a pool company who’s accused of leaving a path of destruction across Massachusetts lost an argument to have his bail reduced as he awaits trial in Plymouth County. As the NBC10 Investigators reported in July, Steven Docchio was arrested on a warrant following a grand jury investigation that resulted in a 17-count...
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‘Scam artists to the core': Police warn of transnational contracting scheme
Massachusetts homeowners are being warned about a transnational criminal organization accused of operating a sophisticated contracting scam. The scheme involves fake websites, fake reviews, and fake companies. The NBC10 Boston Investigators have found dozens of victims around the Boston area. Most are out a few thousand dollars. Some have lost much more. “Nothing looks like it was done professionally,” said…
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Transactional contracting scam in Mass.
Homeowners are being warned about a transnational criminal organization police say is operating a sophisticated contracting scam in Massachusetts.
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Customers criticize prison sentence after paver pleads guilty
People who lost money were hoping for a harsher sentance for paver William Pusateri.
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‘I'm pissed!' Customers criticize prison sentence after paver pleads guilty
The owner of a paving business is heading to prison after admitting to stealing money from his customers and disappearing without ever doing the work. William Pusateri, who operated Priority 1 Paving, pleaded guilty to a series of larceny charges in Middlesex Superior Court on Monday and received a two-year prison sentence. Homeowners who lost hard-earned savings were hoping for…
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Customers connect on social media to hold contractor accountable
Throughout our “To Catch a Contractor” investigative series, we’ve repeatedly heard homeowners express frustration about a lack of accountability from the legal system when they lose hard-earned savings on a project gone wrong. Tired of their complaints falling on deaf ears, some customers are connecting on social media to gain strength in numbers, as one Massachusetts business owner discovered.
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Power in numbers: Customers use social media to hold contractor accountable
While juggling a full-time job and three triplets running around the house, it’s pretty easy to see why Kelsey Janak looks forward to a few quiet moments swinging on the front porch of her Acushnet home. After building the house and moving in with the young kids in 2020, Janak and her husband saved up to build the front...
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Judge denies pool contractor's request to lower bail: ‘Epitome of a flight risk'
The owner of a pool company who’s accused of leaving a path of destruction across Massachusetts will not have his bail reduced as he awaits trial in Plymouth County. As the NBC10 Investigators reported in July, Steven Docchio was arrested on a warrant following a grand jury investigation that resulted in a 17-count criminal indictment. On Oct. 18, Docchio appeared…
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To Catch a Contractor update: Steven Docchio denied lower bail amount
Steven Docchio, the owner of a pool company who’s accused of leaving a path of destruction across Massachusetts, was unsuccessful in his attempt to get his $50,000 bail reduced so he can get out of jail as he awaits trial in his Plymouth County criminal case.
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Contractor accused of renting out apartment he doesn't own
Finding an affordable apartment in this housing market can certainly be a challenge. It was even more challenging for one viewer who reached out after she said she lost thousands to a man pretending to be a real estate agent. “I didn’t think I was going to cry,” Sofía Mariscal said through tears of frustration, recounting how she and...
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Woman says she lost thousands to man pretending to be real estate agent
An investigation from NBC10 Boston and Telemundo Nueva Inglaterra uncovered a trail of people who say they lost money to a contractor, who is now facing criminal charges.
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Contractor caught: Pool company owner arrested
Steve Docchio, the subject of an NBC10 Boston investigation, has been arrested on a warrant.