Reported scam artist surfaces in Washington

By RAY LIGHTNER

Journal Staff Writer

Christopher Kelley and his wife reportedly scammed several in the middle Georgia area before leaving town.

Kristina M. Pike of Pike’s Peak Performance in Perry, one of the contractors who lost money doing business with Kelley’s Mid-State Custom Exteriors tracked him via Internet searches to Gig Harbor, Wash.

Kelley, 34, is wanted for theft by conversion (two counts) and two bench warrants from Superior Court by the Houston County Sheriff’s Office and is listed on Macon Regional Crimestoppers.

District Attorney Kelly Burke said Kelley is wanted for bad check charge and the thefts by conversion, which are felonies since each is more than $500.

Burke said Kelley may face similar allegations in Peach and Bibb counties. “Based on prior dealings with him,” Burke added, “we have started bond forfeiture proceedings.”

“I don’t want to spend the taxpayers money,” Burke said.

“We’ll get the bondsmen to do it first, but if not we’ll go get him.”

He initially only approved extradition in the southeast because Kelley was thought to be in Florida, Burke, explained. Normally Burke said he would not extradite from Washington State, but because of the history with Kelley he has authorized it.

“We’re all for taking him in,” Burke said.

Kelley reportedly defrauded dozens of homeowners, including military families, as well also local subcontractors in Middle Georgia by taking their down payments and not doing the work or not paying the subcontractors for it, according to Pike.

Pike said the homeowner who’s home they worked on lost about $30,000, while others were approximately $12,000, $2,000, $5,000, and so on, Pike said. “Our loss was $7,000 for work we did on his customer’s home.”

She has set her computer to search for Kelley and his wife, Gwendalyn (Gwen) McHenry Kelley and found more complaints against him, and his businesses in Washington state. Locally they were doing business as Mid-State Custom Exteriors. They are now doing business as several different business names including Repair4Free, Core Advantage Services, Core Construction, CM Kelley Enterprises and/or CM Kelley Inc.

Her searches discovered another scam alert on Kelley from a homeowner in Spanaway, Wash., who lost $10,500. The money was paid as a down payment and he had his house torn apart, but the contractor never returned,” Pike said. “This is the same way he ran his scam in Georgia.”

She been in contact with two others locally including the homeowner out $30,000 and another homeowner in Monroe County. She is putting the word out on Kelley, locally and in Washington and has been in contact with law enforcement in Gig Harbor, Washington, where the Kelley’s currently operate.

“If we can get more warrants we can keep him in jail longer,” Pike said. “I just hate that he’s still doing it. I want to prevent it from happening again.”

Sgt. Ronnie Harlowe of the Houston County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division filed the local warrants against Kelley and has been in contact with authorities in Washington. “We’re trying some coordinating with them,” Harlowe said.

Pike also has won a civil lawsuit against Kelley, and admits “we will probably never see the money we are owed. But we still feel it is our duty to do everything we can to keep other contractors and homeowners from being victims as well.”

She filed the first complaint against Kelley with the Better Business Bureau after her business was ripped off and within a matter of three months, BBB membership was revoked for Kelley’s Mid-State Custom Exteriors.

According to the BBB website, the Bureau processed a total of 13 complaints about Mid-State Custom Exteriors in the last 36 months. Of the total of 13 complaints closed in 36 months, 13 were closed in the last year.

On Aug. 31, 2006, this company’s membership in the BBB was revoked by the BBB’s Board of Directors due to failure to honor an arbitrator’s decision despite agreeing to do so. Based on BBB files, this company has an unsatisfactory record with the Bureau due to one or more unanswered and two or more unresolved complaints.

According to the BBB, Mid-State Custom Exteriors had claims of alleged failure to honor contract or agreement, work performed without authorization, invalid contract, alleging billing errors, unauthorized charges, questionable collection practices, alleged failure to honor company policy or verbal commitment to provide refunds, exchanges, or credit for products or services.

The company also failed to resolve the complaint issues; failed to meet the terms of an arbitrated decision in accordance with their BBB agreement; failed to resolve the complaint issues through the BBB voluntary and self-regulatory process; and failed to respond to the complaints.

Anyone with information on Kelley is asked to contact local police or Macon Regional Crimestoppers at 742-2330 or 1-877-68CRIME.