Contractor Accused Of Swindling Colorado Homeowners Arrested In Illinois
ADAMS COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) - A Colorado contractor was arrested for allegedly cheating several homeowners out of tens of thousands of dollars.
John Bradley Ivers, 56, was taken into custody Friday in Springfield, Illinois, and could soon be on his way to Colorado to face 18 felony charges, including two counts of theft from an at-risk adult, according to the Adams County District Attorney's Office.
The charges allege that between June 1, 2015, and Dec. 31, 2015, Ivers took more than $162,000 from 27 victims as deposits for various home improvement projects, but failed to do or complete any of the jobs.
Ivers was operating his business from unincorporated Adams County at 7285 Gilpin Way. Among the victims is Dawn Fleitz, a single mother of three in Aurora, who hired Ivers to finish her basement.
"They did most of the initial framing," Fleitz told CBS4's Kelly Werthmann.
After several months of saving and countless hours researching home improvement contractors online, Fleitz thought she found the right company for a special project.
"Saving up those funds with the promise of providing a bedroom to an autistic child, it was important to us," Fleitz said. "I mean, $9,500 is a lot of money to some people."
Fleitz said discussions initially began with Modern Classic Remodelers, but when it came to sign the contracts, Honey Won't Do was listed as the company doing the work. She spoke with the company owner, John Ivers, about the confusion.
"He just assured me that this was normal, standard practice," Fleitz said. "And that the two companies worked together and provided referrals."
Fleitz signed the dotted line in July of 2015 with work scheduled to begin in late September and wrapped up by October. But just weeks into the job the work stopped, leaving Fleitz's basement torn apart and a $9,500 hole in her pocket.
"I contacted the sales guy to say, 'I'm not getting anyone to call me back, what's going on?' And he said, 'I wouldn't give any more money to Honey Won't Do.' And that was it," Fleitz said.
Frustrated and confused, Fleitz hired an attorney and eventually learned upwards of 20 other people claimed to be swindled by Ivers. She wrote complaints and scathing reviews of the company on Yelp and social media, hoping to prevent others from using Ivers company.
"Strangely enough (Ivers) had contacted my attorney and that attorney put through a three way call and (Ivers) made it sound like he had every intention of making this right and didn't see what all the frustration was," Fleitz said. "He made some comments about coming off his meds and alcohol and that he was back on track, those were no longer issues and he had the funds to move forward."
While the circumstances of Ivers' arrest in Illinois are unclear, Fleitz doesn't want to see him land behind bars.
"None of these people will get their money back if he's sitting in jail and my tax dollars are paying for that," she said.
It is not clear when Ivers will be extradited back to Colorado. CBS4 did reach out to Honey Won't Do as well as other businesses listed in his name, but many lines have been disconnected and emails not yet returned.
Kelly Werthmann joined the CBS4 team in 2012 as the morning reporter, covering national stories like the Aurora Theater Shooting and devastating Colorado wildfires. She now reports for CBS4 News at 10 and is always open to story ideas. Connect with her on Facebook or Twitter @KellyCBS4.
