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Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler announced that on Tuesday, Feb. 8, Shayla Sellars, age 38, of Newburgh, pleaded guilty to the felony charge of scheme to defraud for having defrauded three sets of victims in connection with renovations to houses that they had purchased through Sellars in the City of Newburgh.
Under the terms of the plea agreement, Sellars will be ordered to pay restitution to the victims in an amount to be determined by the District Attorney’s Office when she is sentenced in May, the DA's Office said.
The collective amount of restitution that has been alleged in the case exceeds $300,000, Hoovler said.
The charges against Sellars were the result of an investigation that alleged she had misappropriated funds that she had received as a contractor on a home improvement project in violation of state law.
State lien law provides that when a contractor receives money on a contract to improve real property, such as a house if the contractor does not work on the project, does not properly pay the money they received to those who worked on the project or supplied materials and does not return the money to the homeowner, they are deemed under the law to have stolen the money.
“Losing the ability to live in the house of their choice because they have been the victim of an unscrupulous contractor can have long lasting effects on homeowners,” said Hoovler. “It is important that homeowners know their rights when dealing with home improvement contractors. Unscrupulous contractors give legitimate contractors an undeserved bad name."
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