Missouri Repairman Arrested for Defrauding Homeowners

According to a recently published Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon web site press release, the 37-year-old owner of a small St. Louis home repair business has been arrested and formally charged with defrauding several homeowners in the area of which he worked. Reportedly, the man never finished repairs or honored warranties for his customers that paid for his services.

Kenneth J. Mers, the owner of AMRP Construction and resident of the 4200 block of Salem School Road, was arrested just last week on Thursday, September 13th. He was indicted on three counts of unlawful merchandising practices by a St. Louis County grand jury. His case was also formally pursued by the office of Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon.

The official indictment accuses Mers of taking payment for construction projects, home renovations, and home repairs (which including painting, waterproofing, repairing leaks and cracks, and installing siding) but never fully completely the work. Mers also sold year long and longer warranties for his repair or construction work, but always failed to honor the warranties. Problems came about back in January of 2005 when Mers started selling warranties along with his repair services.

Criminal charges are being pursued against Mers simply because Missouri law provides the Attorney General the pursue them for his crime of unlawful merchandising practices. This type of crime is serious and is considered to be a class D felony under strict Missouri law. For each count brought up against him, Mers could spend up to a total of four years in prison and pay a whopping $5,000 fine.