HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY — For four months, the person asking for a quote on a new A/C system or some electrical work might have been a sheriff's detective.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office says 50 people were arrested in “Operation Bad Builder,” an undercover sting aimed at people doing contracting work without a license, 10 Tampa Bay reported. Sheriff Chad Chronister announced the results Thursday.
How the sting worked
The operation ran from early June to early October. Detectives set up a location in Riverview and posed as homeowners looking for electrical, plumbing and air conditioning work. They reached out to people advertising online and on social media and invited them to come give estimates. Some of the people they contacted were already the subject of complaints about unfinished or shoddy work.
The arrests involve charges of unlicensed contracting and other violations. Chronister also said 18 of the people arrested were in the country illegally.
Two cases the sheriff highlighted
Chronister pointed to Calvin Wilson, 40, who deputies say offered to do air conditioning work without a license, quoted $14,000 and asked for half up front. The sheriff said Wilson was arrested in Pinellas County in 2023 for the same offense.
Detectives also arrested Steven Andreassen, 56, who deputies say offered to do plumbing and electrical work for $2,500, including a $1,000 deposit. The sheriff said neither man is licensed for the work he advertised and both have violent criminal records, according to 10 Tampa Bay and Tampa Bay Beacons.
“This is never about paperwork,” Chronister said. “This is about safety.”
He warned that people still fixing damage from the 2024 hurricanes are especially easy targets for someone promising fast repairs at a suspiciously low price.
How to vet a contractor
Chronister's advice is simple: ask to see the license before anything else. “Any licensed contractor will get excited,” he said. “They're proud to show you their license.”
- Look up the license yourself through the state's Florida DBPR license search. Match the name and the trade to the work you're hiring for.
- Ask for proof of insurance before work starts.
- Get a written contract that spells out the job, the price and the timeline.
- Make sure permits are pulled for work that requires them, like electrical, plumbing and A/C replacement.
- Don't pay the full cost up front. A big deposit request is a red flag.
The sheriff's office says construction fraud is still a problem across the county and complaints keep coming in. If you think you hired an unlicensed contractor, HCSO asks you to call detectives at 813-247-8200.