SACRAMENTO – On February 8-9, 2017, Contractors State License Board investigators set out to find unlicensed contractors in San Jose and Oceanside by setting up an undercover sting houses.  The investigators posed as homeowners looking to pay someone to help with home improvement projects such as painting, plumbing, flooring, landscaping, concrete work, and fencing.

The investigators called on suspected unlicensed contractors for possible bids on the work.  In San Jose, those calls were answered by 23 people who were arrested and cited on misdemeanor charges including contracting without a license, illegal advertising, fraudulent use of a contractor’s license number and requesting an illegally large down payment.   In Oceanside, investigators arrested and cited 18 suspects for some of the same charges.

“There are so many people who are willing to come to your house and be hired for home improvement projects, but you really want to be sure they are licensed by the State of California,” said California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (CSLEA) President Alan Barcelona.  “These investigators are working to put a stop to unlicensed contractors who often do shoddy work and sometimes leave their projects unfinished. Unlicensed contractors put those who hire them, at risk.”

During the Oceanside sting, investigators busted four repeat offenders, suspects who CSLB investigators have cited in the past.  One of the repeat offenders was arrested at the sting house on a $25,000 warrant for a family offense.