A warrant has been issued for the arrest of 69-year-old Jerry Dean Stiles of Searcy, a contractor accused of taking over $15,000 from an Izard County business for work he failed to complete.
According to the Izard County Sheriff’s Office, representatives of Pizza Pro Depot in Melbourne reported that the canopy over their diesel pumps was damaged in February. After finding JD Construction of Searcy online, they hired the company, owned by Stiles, to fix the canopy. Stiles initially quoted $7,900 for the job, which the business paid. They later provided additional payments of $4,000 in May and $3,300 in August.
Despite this, Stiles never completed the repairs. Business representatives shared their communications with Stiles, in which he cited health issues, difficulty hiring help, and equipment problems as reasons for the delay. They ultimately had to hire another contractor to complete the job at an additional cost of $7,850.
Investigators discovered that the Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board has documented numerous instances of Stiles accepting payments for contracting work that was either not started or left incomplete. The board has levied several civil penalties against him. Further investigation revealed that Stiles has been named in six civil lawsuits over similar complaints, all of which have been resolved in favor of the plaintiffs.
In the Izard County case, Stiles faces a theft of property charge for an amount exceeding $5,000 but less than $25,000. His bond will be set at $15,000 once he is taken into custody.
Stiles also has a pending warrant related to another case outside of Searcy earlier this year. He has two prior arrests for similar allegations of taking money from customers without completing the agreed-upon work.