A Camden man has been charged with multiple counts of felony theft after he allegedly defrauded customers that were using his construction business to build homes.
Robert E. Davis, 44, of Camden has been charged with 11 counts of felony theft by deception valued greater than $25,000 and two counts of felony theft by deception valued greater than $5,000.
The maximum penalty for thefty be deception greater than $25,000 is 20 years in prison.
One customer claimed she hired Davis and was defrauded by both the work and financial agreement.
The customer told police she met Davis on Memorial Day weekend of 2021 and he helped her pick out a lot of land for a custom home build. He then offered the services of his company, 4d Construction to build the home.
She stated they entered into a contract for services at $554,000 and Davis told her that, as "a Christian man he felt it on his heard to do the project 'at cost."'
A Camden Police Department report states that construction took place from August 2021 to February 2022 and the customer became suspicious of how her money was being spent due to the increase in cost and uncertainty from Davis.
She stated that she started with a construction loan of $404,000 plus her own money to meet the original contract cost, but had to get another loan of $1,000 and use money from her checking and savings as the price for the construction rose to $715,561.20, a difference of $161,561.20 from the quoted price.
She also told police that multiple items from the original agreement were not started or completed and thousands of dollars worth of work needs to be done to repair the house and bring it up to city code.
The customer also reported paying Davis so he could pay subcontractors for electrical and plumbing work, but Davis allegedly never paid them and instead used the money for a family vacation.
Other customers report paying Davis $157,000 for him to build a home he never started construction on.
They claimed Davis told them before construction began that he "had been praying about it and that he had decided that he was going to close his business."
Davis told the customers he didn't have their money when asked, customers told police.
Davis's financials were subpoenaed and the police report states that he used the money to pay family members, employees, himself and two truck notes.
Another set of customers reported similar circumstances with Davis, such as him drawing $125,000 from a loan for drywall that he never installed and and $20,668.19 for doors and windows that were ordered put never paid for.
They told police that Davis likewise told them he was closing his business and could not repay them after leaving their home unfinished.
Additionally, Davis owed $45,484.15 to Ken's Discount under an account and an additional $67.315.17 under another account, according to police.
A store manager stated that when he tried to get Davis to pay, the suspect promised to pay when get got a job, but when the manager followed up Davis would provide excuses, the police report states.
The manger stated to police that in September 2022 that Davis reached out to him and told him he would not be paying for the products he bought as he was closing his business.
Davis was arrested and released on a $100,000 bond. He is forbidden from engaging in construction or repair work while he is released.
An official with the Arkansas State Licensing board stated that Davis surrendered his license in lieu of a November 16, 2022 hearing and that at the time Davis had three complaints against him.