Real Rip off artists

Arrest warrants issued for father and son accused of bilking elderly Jefferson man in roofing scam By Michelle Hunter, The Times-Picayune March 18, 2010, 5:21PM Authorities are searching for a father and son who allegedly ripped off an 86-year-old Jefferson man in a roofing scam.

JPSOArrest warrants have been issued for Robbie Wharton Jr., 65, and Robbie Wharton III, 34, for contractor fraud and theft, according to Col. John Fortunato, spokesman for the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office.

The Whartons are accused of charging the elderly victim $4,800 for roofing work they didn't perform.

Investigators say the men approached the victim Monday and told him his son had arranged for them to do some work on the roof, Fortunato said. The list of repairs included replacing shingles and some faulty vents, caulking and flashing the other vents, replacing a ridge cap on the garage, repairing a hole in the roof.

The victim, who is disabled, couldn't check the work for himself, but wrote the men a check when they said they were finished. But the victim grew suspicious when he noticed that he couldn't see evidence of any work, according to an incident report.

Detective Stanley Brown discovered that only a few shingles had been removed and someone had painted those spots to make them appear new. The roof vents had also been spray painted to make them seem new, too, according to Fortunato.

The victim's son told investigators that he didn't set up any roofing work and confirmed that his father's check had been cashed Monday at Metairie Bank, Fortuntao said. Bank officials identified the person who cashed the check as Robbie Wharton Jr.

A witness who had been with the victim when the men came by picked Wharton Jr.'s photo out of a lineup, Fortunato said.

Wharton III was later identified by the same witness. He was arrested Feb. 11 on four theft warrants in connection with similar incidents that occurred in 2009. He was released Feb. 12 from the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna on a $20,000 bond, according to court records.

Fortunato said the Whartons may have pulled the same sort of scam before, and investigators are looking for any other possible victims.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Robbie Wharton Jr. or Robbie Wharton III or anyone who may have been a victim of a victimized by them is asked to contact detective Stanley Brown at the Sheriff's Office investigations bureau by calling 504.364.5300. Tipsters can also contact Crimestoppers Inc. at 504.822.1111 or toll free at 877.903.7867. Callers to Crimestoppers do not have to give their names or testify to earn up to $2,500 for tips that lead to an indictment

Authorities arrest father and son accused of scamming elderly Jefferson man By Michelle Hunter, The Times-Picayune March 19, 2010, 12:32PM A father and son wanted for allegedly running a roofing scam on an elderly Old Jefferson man were arrested Thursday evening in Gonzales.

JPSORobbie Wharton Jr., 65 and his son, Robbie Wharton III, 34, surrendered to the Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office and were booked as being fugitives out of Jefferson Parish, according to Col. John Fortunato, spokesman for the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office.

The pair will be booked with theft over $500 and contractor fraud once they are brought to Jefferson Parish.

The Whartons are accused of bilking an 89-year-old man out of $4,800 for roofing repairs they did not perform, according to Fortunato. Investigators issued arrest warrants for the men after they were identified by a witness.

Detective Stanley Brown located the younger Wharton at his home in Gonzales Thursday evening, Fortunato said. After he was arrested, he persuaded his father to surrender himself.

Investigators believe this wasn't the first time the Whartons had scammed a homeowner and have asked residents to contact the Sheriff's Office if they believe they were victimized.

A similar encounter was reported to the Sheriff's Office one day before the Old Jefferson incident. Another 89-year-old man, this time from Metairie, reported that a man he identified as "R.H. Wharton" approached him and said he had been working on a nearby street and noticed his roof needed to be repaired, the incident report said.

The suspect and a younger man claimed to perform three repairs and the victim paid them $1,500. By the time the victim discovered that no roofing work had been done, the check had already been cashed, the incident report said

MN, yep, Irish Travellers. I've had many run-ins with them. They're sneaky little devils. One of the tricks they play is selling their magic stain remover. They take an ink pen and draw all over the customers' clothes, curtains, upholstery then show how their magic cleaner takes the ink right out. Trouble is, it's not ink -- they mix their own mix of vegetable oil and food coloring to put in their ink pen. They will also actually have some pretty good stain remover that they sell for $10/bottle. You buy a 6-pack of it, but only 1 bottle is actually stain remover, the other 5 bottles are filled with water.

Although not the same thing, a big news event in Lubbock this week is some roofer who tore off half a roof on 77th St., before he discovered he was supposed to be on 77th Place. They left it uncovered just before 1" of rain. The roofer is denying it was him, but it sure appears likely that it was.

About 4 years ago i had 3 customers on the same block call me right after a big rain storm - All 3 said their roof was leaking. by the 3rd call i thought i was being set up or something so i dropped everything i was doing and went to see the first customer. They told me another company came in and showed them spots where it leaked. Then proceeded to tell them they could coat thier roof with some magic sealant and would guarantee it not to leak again and it would only be $600.00.

None of them fell for it but they were not sure if it was really a leak or not so they called me directly - From what i can tell 2 go into the house and one distracts while the other uses a spray bottle.

I called the city inspector who immediately called the police couple days later found them in a hotel room with a bunch of Jewelry and cash. they were apparently stealing from the homes as well. The inspector even told me they stole around $15k from some old lady drove her to the bank so she could withdraw money - The bank apparently had a camera outside and were able to make out their van and tracked the van to the hotel -- He said about 12 gypsys? were arrested.

Make them tear roof off, and replace it on the hottest day of year, I'll bet then these con artists will think twice the next time. They probably never worked a day in their life, so I think this would cure them.

Castration with the same pistol?

Roofguy is such a wuss! :( Why go easy on them???? :woohoo:

Step 1. Find them. Step 2. Shoot them In the rigth knee caps. Step 3. Take whatever cash they have and give it to the victim. Step 4. Repeat Step 2. In the left knee caps. Step 5. Repeat Step 4. In the right shins. Step 6. Repeat Step 5. In the left shins Step 7, Repeat Step 6. In the right thighs Step 8. Reload, go back to step 4 and shoot other body parts. Castration is also allowed.

Step 1. Find them. Step 2. Shoot them. Step 3. Take whatever cash they have and give it to the victim. Step 4. Repeat Step 2. Step 5. Repeat Step 4. Step 6. Repeat Step 5. Step 7, Repeat Step 6. Step 8. Reload, go back to step 4.