Crooked contractor sentenced to 10 years in prison for fraud during Hurricane Harvey

A building contractor who took advantage of his workers, suppliers, and clients was sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to stealing $180,000 from 26 different victims, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced Monday.

“After Hurricane Harvey devastated a record number of residents along the Gulf Coast, we pledged to go after anyone who used the situation to hurt or defraud others,” Ogg said. “Prison time is the right result in a case like this because many of these people were cheated while the community was in its darkest hour.”

Benjamin Wood, 36, pleaded guilty Monday to ten years in prison. Because of a thorough investigation, Harris County prosecutors were able to combine the cases of more than two dozen victims to make sure Wood was convicted of a felony that would land him in prison.

Wood, who operated construction companies, had a long history of misdemeanor arrests for credit card abuse, theft and even wage theft from subcontractors. He was involved in schemes before Hurricane Harvey in August 2017 up until his arrest in 2019. After the storm ravaged the area, Wood was able to dupe dozens of people into paying him for work he never did. He wrote dozens of bad checks to small builder supply companies, including mom-and-pop businesses, and to subcontractors on the few projects he actually started, but failed to complete.

“Hopefully examples like this will make other crooked contractors take notice and stop ripping off consumers,” Ogg said. “It’s important to remember that writing bad checks is theft. The fact that Wood received goods and services and the victims received a useless piece of paper is a serious offense.”

Sheila Hansel, the consumer fraud prosecutor who handled the case, said victims reported that Wood was able to gain their trust by talking about his military service and emphasizing that his company was “veteran owned.”

“Wood stole from everyone from his landlord to his employees by bouncing checks everywhere he could,” Hansel said. “He was just papering Harris and Montgomery Counties with bad checks written on closed accounts. He was very convincing, building trust with individuals so that they would take his checks for the materials he needed.”

Wood’s sentence will run concurrently with a ten year sentence he got in Montgomery County for doing the same thing to dozens of people there.

Governor Abbott Extended The Disaster Declaration In February 2020 For Texas Counties Affected By Hurricane Harvey

TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME:

WHEREAS, I, GREG ABBOTT, Governor of the
State of Texas, issued a disaster proclamation on August 23, 2017,
certifying that Hurricane Harvey posed a threat of imminent disaster for
Aransas, Austin, Bee, Brazoria, Calhoun, Chambers, Colorado, DeWitt,
Fayette, Fort Bend, Galveston, Goliad, Gonzales, Harris, Jackson,
Jefferson, Jim Wells, Karnes, Kleberg, Lavaca, Liberty, Live Oak,
Matagorda, Nueces, Refugio, San Patricio, Victoria, Waller, Wharton, and
Wilson counties; and

WHEREAS, the disaster proclamation of
August 23, 2017, was subsequently amended on August 26, August 27,
August 28, and September 14 to add the following counties to the
disaster proclamation: Angelina, Atascosa, Bastrop, Bexar, Brazos,
Burleson, Caldwell, Cameron, Comal, Grimes, Guadalupe, Hardin, Jasper,
Kerr, Lee, Leon, Madison, Milam, Montgomery, Newton, Orange, Polk,
Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Trinity, Tyler, Walker, Washington,
and Willacy; and

WHEREAS, on September 20, 2017, and in
each subsequent month effective through today, I issued proclamations
renewing the disaster declaration for all counties listed above; and

WHEREAS, due to the catastrophic damage
caused by Hurricane Harvey, a state of disaster continues to exist in
those same counties;

NOW, THEREFORE, in accordance with the authority vested in me by
Section 418.014 of the Texas Government Code, I do hereby renew the
disaster proclamation for the 60 counties listed above.

Pursuant to Section 418.017 of the code, I
authorize the use of all available resources of state government and of
political subdivisions that are reasonably necessary to cope with this
disaster.

Pursuant to Section 418.016 of the code,
any regulatory statute prescribing the procedures for conduct of state
business or any order or rule of a state agency that would in any way
prevent, hinder, or delay necessary action in coping with this disaster
shall be suspended upon written approval of the Office of the Governor.
However, to the extent that the enforcement of any state statute or
administrative rule regarding contracting or procurement would impede
any state agency’s emergency response that is necessary to protect life
or property threatened by this declared disaster, I hereby authorize the
suspension of such statutes and rules for the duration of this declared
disaster.

In accordance with the statutory requirements, copies of this proclamation shall be filed with the applicable authorities.

IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have hereunto signed my name and have
officially caused the Seal of State to be affixed at my office in the
City of Austin, Texas, this the 13th day of February, 2020. 

Governor Greg Abbott