Spanaway contractor busted for failing to do work ordered to repay homeowners
An unregistered contractor has been ordered to pay back Puget Sound-area homeowners thousands of dollars in a construction scam.
The man is accused of remodeling projects he never finished and some he never started.
Jasen Anthony Ayers, a 41-year-old man out of Spanaway, pleaded guilty on Friday, June 12, to two counts of felony second-degree theft, two counts of unregistered contracting, and one count of doing business without registering with the Department of Revenue.
In exchange for the plea, the state agreed to not file felony theft and unregistered contracting charges in King and Thurston counties, according to a news release issued by the department Monday.
Pierce County Superior Court Judge Alicia Burton sentenced Ayers to repay more than $11,000 total to 10 victims for the theft charges. Ayers also was sentenced to 16 days of community service.
In addition, Burton imposed suspended sentences for the remaining offenses, the news release stated. Ayers must not break any more laws and report if he changes his address for two years. If he violates the terms, he could face up to 364 days in jail.
“We’re pleased that Mr. Ayers has agreed to repay his victims,” said Chris Bowe, assistant director of Washington State Department of Labor and Industries Fraud Prevention and Labor Standards division. “No one should experience the frustration and financial loss these consumers did.”
The case covered incidents in 2018 and 2019 when Ayers was doing business under multiple names: Ayers and Sons Remodeling, Alpha Construction, Superior Remodeling, Kingdom Construction, and Stoneway Remodeling of Tacoma.
None of his companies was registered as a construction contractor with L&I while only two of his companies had business licenses, according to the Department of Revenue.
L&I confirms contractors have the business license, liability insurance, and a bond, which can provide some recourse for customers if something goes wrong.
According to charging papers, Ayers met most of his victims through Porch.com, a website that connects contractors and customers. He told several of his customers he was registered.
Ayers would quickly respond to inquiries and require a 50 percent down payment and sales tax. At the last minute, he typically gave an excuse that he was not unable to do the job, according to the Department of Revenue.
Victims in Pierce, King and Thurston counties paid him deposits of $125 to $4,000. He directed some customers to write checks out to his personal name instead of the business name.
L&I advises people looking for contractors to hire people registered with L&I, verify their registration at protectmyhome.net, get three written bids, never pay in full until the job is done, pay material suppliers directly instead of through the contractor, and beware of writing checks to an individual instead of the company name.