Scott Eisemann is alleged to have defrauded multiple cottagers out of thousands of dollars in work he promised to do but never completed.
Constable Ted Dongelmans with Orillia OPP tells the MyMuskokaNow.com newsroom they have charged him for two incidents in Orillia. The 51-year-old has been charged with two counts of fraud over $5,000 and two counts of possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000.
“The police investigation is completed,” he says. “What happens going forward is to be determined. It’s up to the courts.” Due to it being in front of the court, can’t comment on specifics of what is alleged to have happened. “I can confirm that he was acting in the role of a contractor and that the work he had promised to do was not completed,” he goes on to say.
CBC reported on another incident involving Eisemann – also known as Scott Daniels – that happened in Bracebridge. Liz Saunders told them she hired “Scottie Evan” of Cottage Life Construction to do the work and paid a deposit before waiting nearly two years for them to do the work.
Saunders explained to CBC she wanted her cottage to be lifted to allow the foundation to be better supported. Two contractors she had reached out to said the cottage would need to be torn down to do the asked work.
Once “Evan” arrived to lift the cottage, Saunders agreed to pay the remaining $64,000 on her bill. She said that the contractor never returned leaving her cottage supported two meters off the ground. Now, five months later, she told CBC the cottage is beginning to sag and she’s worried it will collapse some time this winter.
CBC also reports Eisemann pleaded guilty in November 2014 after defrauding a 92-year-old woman of $132,000 – which was her life savings. He served two years in prison after CBC says judge determined Eisemann took the money for needless renovations to her home.
“I can only speak to the Orillia detachment area,” Dongelmans says. CBC reports at least four other detachments in Cottage Country are investigating Eiseman. “In our area, these are the only two investigations that I know of with regards to the accused party,” he says.
Dongelmans says if you are a victim of Eisemann, or have information on something he’s done to call 1-888-210-1122 to report it to the police. “Any information that comes forward will be investigated,” he says.
Eisemann has a court date scheduled for December 15th in Orillia.