BRATTLEBORO — A decide issued an arrest warrant for a Windsor contractor accused of residence improvement fraud immediately after he did not demonstrate up for arraignment.
Robert M. Merrill Jr., 47, was scheduled to surface Tuesday afternoon in Windham Excellent Court docket, Felony Division. Choose Michael Kainen granted the state’s request for an arrest warrant for not showing up in court and $200 bail.
“That appears to be acceptable,” Kainen mentioned.
In accordance to an affidavit, the Vermont Point out Police been given a report about the incident from the sufferer in May possibly. The sufferer reported he signed a agreement with Merrill Painting Company in April 2020 to paint his secondary home in Londonderry.
The victim told police he wrote two checks to Merrill for a complete of $2,666 and both experienced been deposited by Merrill. Merrill made use of the nicknames “Bud” and “Buddy” when speaking with the victim and retained placing off the start out dates, in accordance to the affidavit.
“’Bud’ agreed on numerous situations,” states the affidavit, listing May well 15, 2020, July 20, 2020, Aug. 10, 2020, Aug. 17, 2020 and Aug. 21, 2021, “to return the deposit cash back to him but never confirmed up and subsequently stopped responding to [the victim’s] e-mail and telephone calls.”
When a trooper achieved with Merrill at his home in Windsor in June, Merrill admitted to cashing the checks and never ever accomplished the portray career as agreed to in the written agreement, in accordance to the affidavit. Merrill told police his organization professional some challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic and he would like to pay back the sufferer back after he receives a paycheck from a different portray work. That experienced not transpired as of the commencing of July and Merrill was cited for house improvement fraud.