More than 40 suspects arrested in undercover operation to catch scammers after Helene, Milton

www.wfla.com, Sierra Rains, November 7, 2024

CLEARWATER, Fla. (WFLA) — Pinellas County officials held a press conference Thursday to discuss the continued arrests of unlicensed contractors in the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton.

Since the two hurricanes hit the area, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office said deputies have investigated an unprecedented number of scams targeting vulnerable residents and businesses.

“This type of unlicensed contracting, the volume of it; the magnitude; people from outside the area — all of the illegals that are here — we have never seen anything like this in Pinellas County,” Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said during Thursday’s press conference.

In order to combat the apparent rise in crime, Gualtieri and Clearwater Police Chief Eric Gandy said their agencies have been conducting several undercover operations.

“Our current focus is protecting our residents and businesses who are desperate to rebuild and get on with their lives from being exploited and ripped off by people offering to do work on their property; but in some cases, have absolutely no intention of doing the work; in other cases are unqualified to do the work, and in all cases are unlicensed to do the work,” the sheriff said.

Their most recent operation, dubbed “Flood of Fraud 2,” resulted in the arrests of over 40 people — 25 of whom authorities said were not from Pinellas County.

Gandy said his officers have seen a large uptick in the number of out-of-state plates in the area, with most of them appearing to be trucks advertising various construction and home improvement services.

According to Gandy, it’s never been easier for these types of scammers to take advantage of unsuspecting victims.

“All they have to do is drive around and look where the debris fields are and where the devastation is,” he said.

Operation “Flood of Fraud 2” spanned from Nov. 6 through Nov. 7. Undercover detectives called the numbers on several ads and signs posted around the county to track down many of the suspects.

Often, they would take payment to perform work on a home, but Gualtieri said they would have “no intention of doing the work.”

Those arrested were reportedly offering to complete 15 different types of projects and over $100,000 worth of work. Altogether, the suspects are facing over 50 different charges.

In another undercover operation targeting unlicensed contractors in late October, authorities arrested 58 people on nearly 80 different charges.

At least 21 of those people were also not from Pinellas County, the sheriff’s office reported.

“A lot of these people are desperate because they’re so vulnerable, they just want their stuff fixed,” Gualtieri said of the people falling victim to these scams, adding that the sheriff’s office is “not going to stop” going after unlicensed contractors.

“We haven’t seen this kind of storm damage in Clearwater previously, and in some cases, it was catastrophic. Houses were completely destroyed and infiltrated with water,” Gandy said. “We’re just here to make sure our citizens don’t take another hit from an unlicensed contractor.”

Deputies have also been carrying out “anti-looting” patrols in order to stop crime on the barrier islands.

So what do you need to know to avoid heartache like this?

We went to the Better Business Bureu to find out.

“The biggest red flag is people knocking on your door, not marked on the cars, they have no identification, they’re asking for money up front in large amounts, they promise they’ll get the job now, and they want you to sign now on the spot or else they’ll go to the next person,” Bryan Oglesby explained.

For any unlicensed contractors out there, Sheriff Gualtieri has a message for you.

“Don’t come to Pinellas County in these storm ravaged communities and don’t pray on people trying to recover and if you do, you’re going to go to jail,” he explained.

Residents can report unlicensed contractor activity by calling the Pinellas County Tipline 727-582-6767.

Individuals can also visit the Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board’s website to ensure that the contractor they’re working with is licensed.

News article: More than 40 suspects arrested in undercover operation to catch scammers after Helene, Milton | WFLA