PAUL SMITHS — A local contractor has been charged with allegedly defrauding multiple customers by overcharging and not completing work. One of the alleged victims has created a crowdfunding campaign to compensate the people who say they’ve lost thousands of dollars and have unfinished homes.

State Police charged Andrew W. Cassata, 27, of Paul Smiths with several felonies on Wednesday, following what police called “a very extensive investigation” into larceny complaints about him and his company, MC Construction and Development.

Police also said that while executing a search warrant at Cassata’s residence, they found two non-compliant “AR-15 style rifles,” one of which was loaded.

He was charged with second-degree grand larceny with the property value exceeding $50,000, four counts of third-degree grand larceny with the property value exceeding $3,000, first-degree scheme to defraud by obtaining property valued at more than $1,000, second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, two counts of criminal possession of a firearm and third-degree criminal possession of an assault weapon, all felonies, as well as first-degree failure to safely store firearms and issuing a bad check with knowledge of insufficient funds, both misdemeanors.

State Police spokeswoman Brandi Ashley said Cassata turned himself in at the NYSP Ray Brook barracks on Wednesday. He was arraigned in Brighton Town Court and released on his own recognizance.

The investigation, which started in October of 2024, was conducted by the NYSP Bureau of Criminal Investigation with assistance from the NYSP Financial Crimes Unit and Computer Crimes Unit.

Ashley said if someone believes they may have been a victim of a crime involving this company to contact NYSP Troop B at 518-897-2000.

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Fundraiser

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Melinda Daniels said she’s one of the victims and she’s started a GoFundMe campaign to restore funds for verified victims at gofund.me/3660f77ac.

Daniels told the Enterprise she hired Cassata to build a home in AuSable Acres in Jay. She advanced him money for materials like roofing, siding and a boiler, but these were never installed. After waiting, she stopped sending money. She said she’s lost around $100,000, personally.

She recently saw the press release about his arrest and said she’s now filing charges against him. But she knows from experience that victims rarely get repaid.

Daniels said contractor fraud is a “huge problem” in the North Country. She said this isn’t the first time they’ve been defrauded on a project.

“Nothing ever happens to them and none of the money is ever re-paid,” she wrote. “It’s devastating.”

She said she knows of three families impacted so far.

“The contractor took our money, failed to deliver the materials we paid for and left our homes unfinished and our lives upended,” Daniels wrote in the GoFundMe. “Many of our families have lost their savings, and our homes remain in disrepair.”

She said she’ll use police documentation to verify victims and distribute money raised equally between the victims.

“The funds raised through this campaign will go directly to compensating the homeowners who lost everything,” she wrote. “Funds will only be disbursed to those with claims verified by participation in legal action through the NY State Police and US District Attorney’s office.”

Daniels’ contact information with an email address is available on the GoFundMe page.

Ashley said the police cannot release more details on this case currently, as the cases are still open and there’s the potential for more victims to come forward.