40-year-old John Bartos is being held in the Trumbull County Jail, after being accused of scamming customers out of thousands of dollars. 

More than a dozen people, in several communities, across four counties in Ohio and Pennsylvania have filed complaints about putting down payments on jobs that never materialized.

According to police reports, Bartos required deposits from his clients, some of them upwards of $4,000, but never completed the projects.  

An Austintown man tells 21 News he paid Bartos to install a window and door, in late spring of 2022, with installation expected to be finished by Thanksgiving, but the local contractor never held up his end of the bargain. 

"Every time I texted him, there was always an excuse," said Joseph Henderson, who made a $2,000 dollar deposit. 

Henderson's deposit was cashed, like many others, but no work had been done, and according to one complaint filed with the Pulaski Township Police Department, materials needed for the job were never purchased.  Those deposits add up to more than $25,000.

In December, Major Jeff Allen with the Mahoning County Sheriff's office said they received three reports on the suspect, two of them for passing bad checks, one of them for taking a down payment and never returning to do the work. Investigators found Bartos had several warrants from different departments out for his arrest.

"Different jurisdictions were starting to file charges. They were getting calls from victims saying the same thing happened to them and it's been a snowball effect ever since for the guy," Allen explained.