April 30, 2001
Trenton,
NJ — A general contractor who bilked seven separate clients out of their
life savings when he failed to build new homes for them was indicted Friday,
Mercer County Prosecutor Daniel G. Giaquinto announced.
Michael Aladich (DOB 1/2/64), whose last known address is the first block of Sheffield Drive in Columbus, was indicted on a single count of theft by deception, a second-degree offense that could result in a maximum 10-year prison term if he is convicted, Giaquinto said. The charge relates to seven victims and an alleged theft of approximately $465,000.
“We
tend to think that violent crimes are the only offenses that really affect
people. This is a clear example
that fraud-related crimes can also be devastating to the victims,” Giaquinto
said.
The
prosecutor’s office began its investigation in January 2000 after being
contacted by the Hamilton Township Police Department.
Prosecutor’s Detective Karen Ortman led the investigation and was
assisted by Hamilton Detective Darwin Kieffer.
Assistant Prosecutor Doris M. Galuchie, head of the prosecutor’s
Economic Crime Unit, presented the case to the grand jury.
Between
January 1998 and December 2000, Aladich accepted payments from seven clients,
varying from $10,700 - $183,400, to build brand new, upper-scale homes in
Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean counties. None
of the homes were completed and Aladich failed to pay the sub-contractors he
hired. Galuchie said the
prosecutor’s office would seek restitution from Aladich in addition to the
conviction.
Aladich,
a Princeton University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in economics, will
be notified by the courts of the warrant of indictment and given an
arraignment date.
Additional
victims of Aladich should contact the Economic Crime Unit at (609) 278-4859.
Despite
having been indicted, every defendant is presumed innocent until found guilty
beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.