A Dix Hills man has been indicted on charges that he scammed a Brooklyn woman over plumbing renovations.
The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office said that Amedeo Ali, 46, stole approximately $305,000 by charging the homeowner for the project that he didn’t perform.
He was arraigned Tuesday on a charge of second-degree grand larceny.
District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said that in November 2020, Ali was hired to renovate the two-story house in Bergen Beach to do significant plumbing work, and provided the homeowner with a master plumber’s license number, which belonged to someone else. He said that the owner of the license wasn’t aware and hadn’t given Ali permission to do so.
The defendant allegedly agreed that for $170,000 he would, among other things, re-pipe the kitchen and bathroom, install a new heating system, and do cement work. In the months that followed, the defendant claimed various problems had occurred to prevent the work from going forward, and periodically asked the victim for additional payments beyond the agreed upon price.
By Nov. 22, 2021, the victim had paid the defendant a total of $305,000. The first floor was still demolished. The defendant allegedly demanded more money before he would return and finish the job, but the victim refused. Instead, she eventually hired a new company, which asked her for information about the defendant’s business and licensing.
After a search of public records, the victim learned the defendant was not a licensed plumber and paid the new company $125,000 to fix what the defendant had done and to properly complete the renovations.
He was released without bail and ordered to return to court on April 10.