Police are investigating a Toronto homebuilder after a number of clients have accused the company of pocketing their money and leaving construction projects unfinished.
GarCon Building Group was in the midst of more than a dozen projects in the Greater Toronto Area when it apparently faltered last year. CTV Toronto's Collin D’Mello says the owner of GarCon, Adam Gardin, claims the company has collapsed. He says his company will likely not be able to finish the work they started.
But despite pulling out of the projects, homeowners allege GarCon has not refunded their money. Many of their homes sit unfinished, some with basements still filled with debris and electrical equipment hanging from the ceilings.
"I have kids, I have a family – we've all worked hard for that," one of GarCon's clients, Greg Harris, previously told CTV Toronto. "Who is he to take that from us."
So far, at least two homeowners have talked to police. Const. David Hopkinson said Wednesday the allegations involve fraud, or "hiring someone to do a job and the job is not complete."
And it's not just GarCon's clients that have been affected. Gardin's former sub-contractors and workers say cheques from GarCon have bounced, leaving them financially in a tough spot.
"He couldn't pay anybody," GarCon foreman Rodrige Menezes said Monday, when a small group of employees staged a protest outside of Gardin's home.
A day earlier, Gardin emailed his clients saying that he was "guilty of being a bad businessman, overly arrogant and not effectively communicating (his) situation." He said, however, that he was "not a thief” and that he has “not defrauded anyone."
Police say they have not spoken to Gardin or a representative of GarCon.
With a report from CTV Toronto's Collin D'Mello
