MANCHESTER — A local couple who ran a contracting business have been accused of taking payments for jobs and not returning to do the work, show court documents.
According to court documents, Manchester residents Jason and Kathleen Lapointe took thousands of dollars from residents in Coventry, South Windsor and Vernon for jobs they never started.
Records show Jason Lapointe has been charged with two counts of second-degree larceny and violation of a home improvement contract, while Kathleen Lapointe has also been charged with second-degree larceny as well as violation of a home improvement contract and failure to refund a job worth more than $10,000.
According to a spokesperson for the Connecticut Office of the Attorney General, three complaints have been filed against the couple’s company, Carpentry by Jay. A spokesperson for the Department of Consumer Protection said it had received six complaints about the company.
“The resulting investigation is ongoing and the complaints cannot be provided at this time,” a DCP spokesperson said. “So far, the investigation, which is being carried out in coordination with the Office of the Attorney General and local police, has resulted in two warrants that have been served.”
Coventry police said they were contacted by a local resident on Oct. 28 about paying Jason Lapointe to replace the windows to her home on Cedar Swamp Extension, according to the arrest warrant.
The resident told police a contract was signed and she paid Jason Lapointe $18,000, which was half of the total cost and would go toward the purchase of custom windows for the home, the warrant stated.
Police said the check was immediately cashed by Kathleen Lapointe, and for months, Jason Lapointe told the resident the windows were ordered and being shipped, but he never started working on the job, the warrant stated.
Police said Kathleen Lapoint agreed to be interviewed in January and told investigators she was in the process of declaring bankruptcy and said she planned to reimburse the resident, stated the warrant. She told the officers the windows were never ordered, the warrant stated.
According to the warrant, a DCP investigator also determined that Jason Lapointe was not a registered home improvement contractor when he was offered to do the job.
According to court documents, Jason Lapointe was also charged with second-degree larceny stemming from a job in Vernon. Police said a resident of Brent Drive reported in October 2022 they paid Lapoint $8,000 to repair their roof in November 2021, but the work was never done, the warrant stated.
Police said the resident eventually demanded a refund, and Kathleen Lapointe told them it would come in two payments, but no reimbursement was received, the warrant stated.
Court documents show Kathleen Lapointe was charged with hiring an unregistered salesperson to act on her behalf and failed to refund a payment for home improvement within 10 days of a written request.
According to another arrest warrant, a DCP investigator found Jason Lapointe offered to do a number of home improvement projects at a South Windsor home in April 2022. While the work was supposed to start by May 14 of that year, DCP said it never happened even though the resident paid a deposit of $11,400, the warrant stated.
When the resident contacted Kathleen Lapointe on June 3, 2022, DCP said she apologized and arranged to come to their home in August. When they met, Kathleen Lapointe tried to get the resident to sign a second contract for the same job, the warrant stated.
According to the warrant, Kathleen Lapointe later told the South Windsor resident they were closing Carpentry by Jay and would refund the customer’s money. However, the customer never received a refund, the warrant stated.
Court records show Jason Lapointe will appear June 7 in state Superior Court in Rockville, while Kathleen Lapointe will
is scheduled to enter a plea at Rockville Superior Court on June 7 while Kathleen Lapointe is scheduled to appear June 21 in Manchester Superior Court and June 28 in Rockville.