CORTLAND A man from Trumbull County is among half a dozen victims named in a nearly $3 million fraud scheme that resulted in a felony indictment against a Cleveland-area homebuilder.

Jeffrey Crawford, who owns Cleveland Custom Homes, is implicated in separate alleged fraud operations starting in July 2021.

A Cortland resident appears to have been scammed in one of two fraud operations allegedly perpetrated by Jeffrey Crawford of Cleveland Custom Homes. The alleged scheme involved Crawford taking money from investors with a promise of profit and then failing to repay the funds.

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley says the Cortland man invested $80,000 with Crawford and was provided with five post-dated checks that all bounced when deposited into his account.

The charges against 51-year-old Crawford, of Avon, Ohio, include passing bad checks related directly to transactions with the Cortland investor. The counts allege that Crawford issued or transferred checks to the victim, knowing they would be dishonored or that a stop payment order would be placed.

The alleged bad checks were issued between August 2023 and December 2023, with individual amounts ranging from $1,800 to $56,000.

In addition to the bad check counts, Crawford is also charged in the Trumbull County case with grand theft and securing writings by deception. The grand theft count alleges that Crawford deprived the victim of property or services, specifically money, by deception between May 2023 and September 2025.

Those charges are part of a broader, 21-count indictment against Crawford, alleging that his schemes totaled $2.93 million and affected at least five other individuals from Cuyahoga and Lorain counties.

 The grand jury charged Crawford with two counts of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, four counts of aggravated theft, and counts of telecommunications fraud, forgery, tampering with records, and money laundering. The indictment also includes one count of theft from a person in a protected class.

The prosecutor's office believes other victims are likely.

"Jeffrey Crawford is a con artist," Prosecutor O’Malley said, urging potential victims of Crawford or Cleveland Custom Homes to come forward by contacting the U.S. Secret Service Money Laundering Task Force by calling 216-750-2058.

Crawford is expected to be arraigned at the Cuyahoga County Justice Center later.