Man allegedly took more than $25,000 but didn’t finish home improvement jobs

A State College man faces two counts of a third-degree felony after taking money for jobs that police say weren’t finished.

The work was at two homes in the Gray’s Woods area, just a few lots away on the same street.

Roger Hileman and the first set of homeowners agreed to a contract on Aug. 12 to upgrade an unfinished basement and install wood flooring in an upstairs dining area.

The agreed upon price for the basement finish was $20,000 and the flooring job would cost an additional $1,100, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed by Patton Township police.

No completion date was noted on the contract, but the estimate provided by Hileman was about four weeks. Advanced funds of $10,550 were paid to Hileman by the homeowners.

The jobs were started Sept. 13 and the flooring job was completed on Oct. 5. The homeowners deemed the work unsatisfactory and had a verbal agreement with Hileman that the flooring job would be redone. Little to no work has been completed at the residence since then, police said.

Between Oct. 30 and Nov. 22, the homeowners sent a combination of 22 text messages or phone calls to Hileman with no response. After an official police report was filed by the homeowners on Nov. 28, Hileman acknowledged having to repay the advanced funds no later than Jan. 16. Hileman has failed to return all advanced funds, police said.

The homeowners were able to contact one of the workers, however, who told them that Hileman said not to return to the job site because they had been fired due to a theft report at another Port Matilda home.

Police said they checked with those owners and they denied the claim, stating that they wanted their project to be completed.

Those second homeowners agreed to a contract with Hileman on July 23 to finish a basement, as well. The two parties agreed to a $29,950 price tag for the remodel, police said.

No completion date was noted on the contract, but the homeowners were told the job would be completed prior to the birth of their child, due Dec. 2. A five-week estimate was also provided, police said.

Advanced funds of $15,000 were paid to Hileman on July 23. The first day of work was conducted on Aug. 21. The last day any work was performed was Oct. 11. The homeowners notified Hileman that they were concerned with the quality of the work, and Oct. 25 was the last day that they had communication with Hileman, police said.

A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday. Hileman is free without bail pending his appearance.

This story was originally published January 26, 2018 at 1:26 PM with the headline "Man allegedly took more than $25,000 but didn’t finish home improvement jobs."