A Morgantown man is accused of claiming to be a contractor, charging more than $7,000 for roofing work and then not doing it.
James Robert Eckles, 52, is charged with fraudulent schemes by the Morgantown Police Department.
A woman went to the MPD station on Spruce Street on Sept. 22 to file the fraud report, according to a criminal complaint. She told police she need a new roof on a home she owned in Fairmont, which is managed by Bel-Cross Properties in Morgantown and Eckles represented himself as contractor for the company.
The alleged victim and Eckles made a contract which stated Eckles would do the work on her roof for $7,575. He was paid $5,300 on April 23 and the remainder of the balance on May 11, the complaint said. Officers were shown photocopies of the checks used to pay Eckles and a copy of the contract with the letterhead “Bob’s Roofing LLC.”
Eckles never showed up to the Fairmont property or did any work on the property, the complaint said. The woman who hired him contacted Bel-Cross and was told Eckles has been fired. She also discovered Eckles doesn’t have a contractor’s license and the number he gave her was either inaccurate or no longer in service.
The day after taking the report, Bel-Cross told the MPD that Eckles was fired in April.
Eckles was arraigned in Monongalia County Magistrate Court and is being held in North Central Regional Jail in lieu of $10,000 bond.
