Person convicted 3 situations billed all over again

A Berks County person beforehand sentenced to probation for property advancement fraud in 3 counties faces new fraud counts soon after Mohnton law enforcement accused him of ripping off two borough home owners to the tune of virtually $11,000.

Joseph Duerr, 39, whose very last acknowledged handle was detailed as the 2800 block of Sturbridge Court docket in Spring Township, was arrested Monday by members of the warrants division of the Berks County sheriff’s workplace.

Arrest specifics have been unavailable.

Duerr was dedicated to the county jail in lieu of $100,000 bail soon after arraignment Monday night time right before District Judge Dean R. Patton in Reading through Central Court docket.

In both equally cases he’s charged with house enhancement fraud, theft by deception and deceptive small business techniques.

Duerr has pleaded guilty to comparable counts in Lehigh County in 2019, Lancaster County in 2020 and Berks County in 2017, according to court documents.

He was presented many years of probation in each and every of all those conditions, with the stipulation that he will have to pay restitution to the victims in full during his probationary interval.

Mohnton police Chief Eric Pistilli said he was dispatched Sept. 16 to investigate stories of contractor fraud in opposition to two owners with adjoining backyards.

Pistilli furnished the following specifics in the the probable result in affidavits:

Both victims explained they hired Duerr, who purported to be a certified property advancement contractor under the name Northeast Epoxy LLC, to make backyard improvements.

The function was never finished, prompting them to uncover by way of online investigation that Duerr was on probation for contractor fraud.

One assets proprietor reported she gave Duerr a check for $3,000 on July 30 as a down payment for advancements to her yard shed, which include a stone walkway and retaining wall.

She created the look at payable to Northeast Epoxy but the receipt she obtained from Duerr was under the letterhead of a different business, Truss International Construction Co.

3 times later on, Duerr contacted the property owner and said that his staff would be dividing the position into 3 phases. Because Duerr had now deposited her examine, the home-owner experienced minimal alternative but to keep on on with the arrangement.

On Aug. 24, the property owner contacted Duerr to inquire about the standing of the function. He informed her that he scheduled the operate to be done beginning Sept. 8, and that he was sending a crew that would total the get the job done in a solitary day.

On Sept. 8, the target acquired a cellphone simply call that dropped after a single ring. Her caller ID showed it was from Duerr.

She began to get many textual content messages from the same mobile phone selection that indicated the job had been set on maintain because of to permitting troubles.

Added textual content messages on Sept. 22 and 27 suggested of allowing issues and attainable refunds, but the function wasn’t completed nor was she refunded her down payment.

The other home owner hired Duerr to make backyard improvements such as making a coated patio addition. She compensated $7,780 to Duerr via Northeast Epoxy.

On Aug. 25, she was notified by the borough code enforcement officer, Glen Bertolet of Kraft Code Providers, that neither Duerr nor Northeast Epoxy had used for the necessary development allow.

Though Bertolet was on the property, Duerr known as the property owner on her cellphone.

Bertolet spoke with Duerr right and defined the require for a permit and the approach. Duerr said he would implement for the allow and also stated that he was a accredited contractor.

On Sept. 16, Kraft Code Companies issued a notice of violation/quit function purchase to the property owner due to the fact Duerr had failed to use for the design permit.

Pistilli uncovered as a result of the research of the Pennsylvania lawyer general’s site that neither Duerr nor Northeast Epoxy are mentioned as licensed contractors, opposite to statements Duerr produced to the victims and the code enforcement officer.

Duerr, formerly of Richmond Township, was on probation from the 2017 Berks circumstance when he was arrested in 2019 on rates he took funds from homeowners in Allentown and Bethlehem.

He afterwards pleaded guilty to individuals costs in Lehigh County Courtroom and stays on probation in all those situations, court documents show.