Customers warn of alleged car restoration scheme

CARROLL COUNTY, Ga. — Several seniors says a man is taking advantage of them. The alleged scheme has the man being hired to restore old cars, but then the man doesn’t deliver, leaving the cars in pieces.

Charles Thomas and his wife had a dream to restore a ‘55 Chevy Belaire, just like the one he had when they started dating.

"Just to bring back old memories. It was important to us something we wanted to do in our senior years," Thomas told Channel 2’s Carl Willis. %

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But that dream became a nightmare when the Carroll County resident says Christopher Demelo got hold of the car.

Thomas says he paid Demelo around $13,000 for work, only to have his car left in shambles.

"(He says) he needs more money for this, to do the body work. Eventually he just quits working on it," said Robert Garrett.

Garrett told Willis he lost around $14,000.

And Jeffrey Walker said his grandmother was taken for nearly $30,000 trying fix a ‘69 Camaro after his grandfather died.

"They're both gone. Probably won't get neither one of them back," Walker said.

Records show Demelo was found guilty of theft by deception and theft by conversion for two cases and served six months in the Haralson County Jail.

He's out now, and the former clients fear that Demelo is at it again -- this time in Atlanta.

Willis found a Facebook page for his company and the phone number listed went right to Demelo.

He told Willis over the phone that he's working on getting his life together and plans on paying restitution to those who he owes.

"He had a chance to pay me since 2012," Garrett said.

Carroll County deputies say Demelo would complete some work on cars, turning most grievances into civil matters.

"He knows if I turn a wrench, oh now it's not criminal," said Thomas.

Now, the former clients are offering a warning even if they never get their money back.

"I can live with that if we can stop him from doing it to someone else," Garrett said.

Cox Media Group