Serial snowplow scammer faces charges
Jon Hand, Staff writer 7:55 a.m. EST December 16, 2014
Rochester Democrat & Chronicle
Scott Romero appeared in Irondequoit Town Court. (Photo: MAX SCHULTE/@maxrocphoto/, STAFF
PHOTOGRAPHER)
In 2009, it was Affordable Tree Experts.
In 2011, it was Extreme Snowplowing.
This time it was MET Construction — three companies with one thing in common:
They were all run by Scott Romero — a man police investigators and consumers are calling a serial scammer
who hid his identity by using a phony name, giving false phone numbers and addresses, and often preying on
older people.
Romero, 39, whose court file lists multiple addresses around the county, was in Irondequoit Town Court on
Monday facing charges of second-degree scheme to defraud and petit larceny after people came forward last
week to say that the company they hired to plow their driveways — MET Construction — never showed after
the first big storm of the year.
The charges involved two alleged victims who said Romero promised plow services and took $269 from them,
total, then failed to perform any work.
Police investigators from around Monroe County are now trying to find out how many people Romero might be
accused of scamming.
"Based upon all of the information that we have, we believe that Mr. Romero is a person who just keeps doing
this and doing this and that's why we decided to file criminal charges against him," said Irondequoit police Sgt.
Mark Bean.
"We've been working with the Greece Police Department, the Webster Police Department, Monroe County
Sheriff's Office, the New York State Attorney General's Office and the Better Business Bureau, and we are up
to about 50 complaints throughout the area, at least, and it's an ongoing investigation to see if Mr. Romero is
responsible for anything else."
At least 26 of those complaints came from Irondequoit, and the stories are remarkably similar: After seeing
advertisements in local newspapers, they would contact Romero who identified himself — and filled out
purchase orders — as "Andy Stewart."
1
Romero sold them plowing services for the winter season, promised 24-hour attention, and charged them
between $150 and $200. Some paid cash, others wrote checks.
Jill Weber, of Greece, met with Romero and wrote a check for $179 to MET Construction. When she received a
copy of the canceled check from her bank, the name had been changed to "METRO Construction."
"I called this guy and he came to my house and he was very nice, I signed the contract and then that was it,"
said Weber who attended the hearing on Monday. "I think I even talked to him about being nervous about
getting scammed."
Sheena Garman's mother, Linda, said she gave Romero $199 in cash to plow her daughter's Mildorf Street
driveway. The service was supposed to be a present for her daughter.
"He sat in my driveway in his pickup and I signed the contract and paid him," Linda Garman said. "He was very
nice, he said this was a way of keeping his employees busy during the winter. He said they do concrete work
and I almost hired him to do some of that work, too."
The mother and daughter also attended the hearing, shortly after filing a report with Irondequoit police.
Marie Furino, of Gates, says she saw the MET Construction advertisement in October offering low rates and
discounts for seniors. Furino is 71.
"He was going to charge me $162 and I gave him half, $81," she said.
Then she got suspicious, and started doing her own investigation, including going to the address listed on
Romero's paperwork.
"The phone number and address on the purchase order paperwork is phony. The number doesn't work and the
address, 3573 Lake Avenue, is a double home and both residents there said they'd never hear of Andy Stewart
or MET Construction," Furino said.
When she asked for her money back, the man Furino would later learn from news reports was Scott Romero
said he'd pay her, but the excuses started. Once he was late getting to the bank. Then his truck broke down and
he was busy with putting in plow stakes.
Once, he told Furino he mailed a reimbursement check to the wrong address.
"I said Andy, you have my address right on the purchase offer you gave me, how could you get it wrong?"
The MET Construction website (metconstructionsnowremoval.com) is a single page with a phone number to
call and a place to leave a written message. It claims the company has more than 25 years of experience, has 24hour dispatch service, and you can "reach your driver anytime, day or night."
A call to that phone number reaches a recording telling callers that all drivers are busy but that plowing is
continuing. The mailbox is full and can not take additional messages.
At the top of the page is an ad for a special which clearly targets older consumers: "Full Residential Contracts
Starting at $169" and "Senior Discounts."
2
When she heard Romero's name this weekend connected to a snow plow scam, Carolyn King of Webster was
not surprised.
"He's been doing this for years, he just changes the name of the company," said King, who said she hired
Romero and his Affordable Tree Experts to plow her daughter's driveway from November 2009 to April 2010.
"She was a single mother and we told him she needed to have reliable service so she could get out early in the
morning. He said 'No problem, no problem'," King said. She recalls Romero had someone plow it twice — King
believes it was to temporarily keep up appearances — and then she tried to get her money back by going to
Webster small claims court.
"There were so many people there trying to get their money back from him they had to split it into two nights,"
King said.
County records show at least two judgments against Affordable Tree Experts in 2010 and 2011.
In 2011, the attorney general's Buffalo office sued Romero and his company, Extreme Snowplowing, for
$120,000, accusing Romero and his business partner of taking money from more than 400 consumers in the
Buffalo area and then never delivering on the services.
Romero and Richard Marrapese were ordered to pay back customers and were required by a judge to post a
performance bond before being allowed to work again. Whether either of those things happened is unclear.
"Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's Office takes allegations of consumer frauds seriously. We are working
closely with local law enforcement and are exploring all options, including whether the respondent is in
contempt of court based on previous court orders obtained by our office," said Nick Benson, Schneiderman's
deputy press secretary.
Benson declined to comment further, including on the contempt charge.
King said she doesn't understand how Romero can continue to create phony businesses and scam consumers.
"What I don't get is how he keeps making up these companies. How does this keep happening? Don't people
have to give their Social Security number, or something?" she said.
In court on Monday, Romero was dressed in a Monroe County Jail jumpsuit and shackled at the wrist and ankle.
A plea of not guilty was entered on his behalf at his arraignment Friday night by Irondequoit Judge Patrick
Russi, who presided over the Monday hearing, as well.
Appearing Monday with his lawyer, Christian Kennedy, Romero fidgeted, and several times tried to talk to
Russi despite the judge's warnings that it would not be in his best interest to do so.
"Don't say anything," Kennedy told his client.
Kennedy asked Russi to lift the $750 cash bail amount and release Romero from jail, stating that he did not
believe Romero missing some houses during the first snowstorm of the year constituted a "systemic" pattern of
behavior on Romero's part.
He said Irondequoit police were "overzealous" by arresting Romero following a traffic stop for a broken light
Friday night (it was then police determined Romero had been driving without a license).
3
Bean, the Irondequoit police sergeant, told Russi about the numerous complaints against Romero, the possible
contempt charge pending from the Attorney General's Office and prior problems.
Russi instead raised bail to $3,000 cash or $6,000 bond and ordered Romero to return at 3 p.m. Jan. 12.
JHAND@DemocratandChronicle.com
Twitter.com/jonhand1
Avoiding a snowplow scam
By following several basic tips when hiring a contractor, consumers can help ensure quality work and avoid
falling victim to scams, according to a release by Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman.
• Obtain several quotes for snow plowing services. This will give consumers a good sense of the range of prices
currently being offered.
• Don't accept a quote simply because it's the lowest. If a quote is very low, the contractor may run out of
money before the winter season is over or the contractor may not have money to pay for repairs when a vehicle
breaks down.
• Use a contractor that has been in business for a few years or that comes recommended by friends and
neighbors. The winter season brings out many people who decide to get into the snowplowing business. New
businesses may have the best of intentions, but may not have the necessary experience.
• Check to see whether your local government requires snow plow contractors to be licensed. If so, use a
contractor who is licensed.
• Use a contractor who is insured and has proof of insurance.
• Check for complaints with the Better Business Bureau: www.bbb.org.
• Pay one half of the contract at the beginning of the season, and one half at the end to help ensure that services
promised will be provided.
• Pay by check so you have proof of payment.
• Get a signed contract that has the name, address (do not accept a post office box) and telephone number of the
snowplow operator. The contract should spell out how much snow must fall before the operator is required to
plow your driveway.
• Obtain proof of identity of the contractor. Ask to see the contractor's driver's license and copy down the
address and identification number.
• Copy down the license plate number of the vehicle that plows your driveway.
• If you have special requirements, spell it out in the contract (for example, if you are an emergency responder
who must have your driveway plowed by 7:00 a.m. to get to work, make sure it is in the contract).
If consumers think that they have been victimized, they are urged to contact the attorney general's Consumer
Helpline: (800) 771-7755.
4