Bellefonte business owner faces felony charges, sued for $12,000

A Bellefonte business owner has been charged with several felonies and sued for $12,000.

A Bellefonte police officer said in an affidavit that Melanson Design’s owner Justin Melanson “is a danger to the community while he is free to prey on unsuspecting and naive people” due to a history of home improvement fraud.

Melanson pleaded guilty in 2014 to felony home improvement fraud and felony receiving stolen property, according to the affidavit, which said that there are other active investigations into Melanson.

Melanson, a contractor in Bellefonte, entered into a deal to do work in November 2016 with a couple for a home off North Thomas Street and never completed it, the affidavit said.

The couple gave police a timeline of events in their dealings with Melanson, who allegedly lied to them in 2015 about also having an autistic child to gain their trust, according to an affidavit of probable cause. The couple learned at an undisclosed time that Melanson has lied to other people to obtain work in the region.

The couple and Melanson almost struck a $45,000 deal in April 2016 for renovations to a property off East Curtin Street, but the agreement fell through when Melanson increased estimated costs to about $79,000, according to an affidavit.

The two parties began to communicate again in September 2016 about the North Thomas Street property and finalized a $12,000 deal in November, the affidavit said. Work was supposed to begin shortly after the couple deposited $8,000 to Melanson Designs, but Melanson allegedly did not return any texts or calls for about two months.

The couple was able to communicate with Melanson after finding a different phone number for him online, though he allegedly did minimal work afterward.

Melanson, the couple told police in February, did not complete the work and agreed to a $6,000 refund, which was allegedly not paid. A Bellefonte police officer mediated the situation, leading to Melanson and the couple to agree to a four-week extension on the project.

With renovations still incomplete in late April, the couple requested a $6,000 refund and Melanson gave the couple an email for a local attorney, who allegedly told the couple he was not associated in any way with the matter. The couple told Melanson in an email that they had no choice other than to have him prosecuted and said they informed police about the situation. Melanson’s wife then allegedly responded that they would settle on a lower refund, though communication ended at that point.

Melanson was charged with three felony counts each of receiving advanced payments for services and failing to perform, theft by deception and receiving stolen property. He was released on unsecured $25,000 set by District Judge Kelley Gillette-Walker.

A formal arraignment for the criminal case is scheduled to take place at 2 p.m. Aug. 2, and civil action hearing in the civil case is scheduled for 11 a.m. Aug. 14.

This story was originally published July 25, 2017 at 12:53 AM with the headline "Bellefonte business owner faces felony charges, sued for $12,000."