CHRISTIANSTED — Attorney General Denise George said tonight that the Virgin Islands Department of Justice (VIDOJ) arrested a St. Croix resident who misrepresented himself as a licensed contractor to perform work repairs to a someone’s home.
V.I. Department of Justice Special Agent Gisselle Quinones conducted a fraud investigation and executed a warrant for the arrest of David Valliere, 58, on felony charges of Obtaining money by false pretense, Grand Larceny, and Embezzlement by Clerks, Agents, Employees, etc. in relation to obtaining money for repairs to a hurricane damaged home, that he did not intend to complete.
Superior Court Magistrate Miguel Camacho found that there was probable cause to sustain all the charges and to move the case forward.
Bail was set at $50,000 and Valliere was ordered to abide by several court-imposed bail conditions, which include no contact with witnesses and reporting to the probation office weekly.
Valliere is also not allowed to leave the territory and must reside with a third-party custodian or post 10-percent of bail.
According to an affidavit in support of the arrest warrant filed by Special Agent Gisselle Quinones of the Virgin Islands Department of Justice, investigation revealed that Valliere presented himself to Jose Torres who resides at Hill Street, Christiansted and offered to perform repairs to his home that sustained damages due to Hurricane Maria on September 21, 2017.
Torres submitted repair claims to Cunningham and Lindsey through Marshal & Sterling following the hurricane. An inspector then submitted an estimate for the total sum of damages sustained which amounted to $35,971.37.
Torres had a conversation with Valliere who claimed he was a licensed contractor and agreed to do the work on the home. On May 5, 2018 Valliere submitted a proposal to Torres bearing the company name “Freedom City Handyman” and a second proposal bearing Valliere’s name on June 2, 2018. Torres stated that he was under the impression that Valliere was a licensed contractor.
Torres stated that eventually he and Valliere had a dispute over the poor job being done and the lack of manpower. Inspections were requested and completed that revealed inconsistencies.
Jose Torres made an initial complaint at the Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs on January 22, 2019 for lack of services rendered by Valliere and a hearing was held. Contact was made with Stephen Hoczack, the licensed owner of Freedom City Handyman who was able to provide documentation that Valliere is not an employee of his nor does he have the authority to represent his company.
A citation was issued to Valliere on February 6, 2019 with a penalty of $500.00 for operating without a business license.
Valliere then halted work in March of 2019. Valliere received a total of $23,980.80 from Torres, however, the work has not been completed.
According to DOJ Special Agent Quinones, on August 19, 2019, she visited the home to photograph the work that was done, and she reported that as a result of the poor job, Torres’ home is still exposed to the outside elements.
AG George reminds the public that any person charged with a crime in the Virgin Islands is considered to be innocent until proven guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction.