Springdale contractor faces felony theft charge

A Springdale home improvement contractor was arrested after a family accused him of taking full payment up front for a project he didn’t finish.

Jason Raymond Mager, 46, of the 400 block of Ridge Avenue was charged with two felony counts of home improvement fraud along with counts of theft by deception and engaging in fraudulent business practices.

Mager was released from the Allegheny County Jail after a Uniontown bail agency posted a $20,000 bond on his behalf. He faces a preliminary hearing before District Judge David Sosovicka on Sept. 26, according to court records.

A police officer wrote in the criminal complaint charging Mager that a homeowner reported paying the contractor $3,463 in late April for drainage work and a fence around their property.

Police said Mager violated a state consumer protection law by accepting full payment up front instead of the one-third that is permitted.

The homeowner told police Mager finished the drainage work by mid-May, but informed them that he was waiting for the fencing material to be delivered so he could complete the project, the complaint said.

The property owners told police that, over a two-week period in July, Mager gave them several excuses for why he couldn’t finish the work, the complaint said.

In one text message, Mager told them he couldn’t get the fencing material because it was delivered to the house of a friend who had died, the complaint said.

After repeatedly arranging for the work to be done and then failing to show up, the homeowners asked Mager to refund the $1,132 he charged them for the fence, police said.

The family told police that Mager continued to string them along for several more weeks after he promised to refund a portion of the money and make payments on the balance.

They said he failed to pay up even after signing a document they drafted in which he agreed to refund the money in two payments by Aug. 15, the complaint said.

The homeowners contacted police on Aug. 30 and provided them with copies of the agreement along with text messages, bank statements and other documents to support their allegations, according to the complaint.

Before filing charges, investigators contacted the state Attorney General’s Office, which confirmed Mager is not a registered home improvement contractor, the complaint said.

According to court records, Mager faces a preliminary hearing on Nov. 7 before Sosovicka for a felony charge of theft by deception filed by the Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department on July 6.

In December 2015, Mager pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of receiving stolen property filed by Frazer police and was sentenced to three years of probation, according to court records.