Bank teller credited with stopping scam

An alert teller thwarted an home improvement scam against a 90-yearold Longswamp Township homeowner, leading to the arrests of a Delaware man and his teenage son, state police said.

Troopers said the suspects, who are known to be transient, may have engaged other homeowners in Berks and neighboring counties as well as the tristate area.

It all unfolded just before noon on New Year’s Eve when the victim, who lives in the first block of Barbara Drive, went to his bank in Macungie, about 4 miles away in western Lehigh County, to withdraw $3,800, according to investigators.

When she asked why he needed to withdraw the money, he said the roofers needed more money to complete a job at his home.

Sensing the customer may be the victim of a home-improvement scam that commonly targets overly trusting elderly homeowners, the teller called county dispatchers.

The probable cause affidavit provided further details:

Macungie police Officer Patrick McLaughlin responded to the victim’s home in the first block of Barbara Drive in Longswamp to investigate what was termed suspicious activity. McLaughlin noticed a black pickup truck with a Delaware license plate on Mountain Road, which intersects with Barbara Drive. State police from the Reading station, which provides the primary police coverage for Longswamp and other municipalities in the ToptonMertztown area, arrived later.

McLaughlin stopped the truck and detained its occupant, James P. Burke, 50, of Bear and his 14-year-old son.

Meanwhile, Trooper John Finkbiner interviewed the homeowner. The man said Burke knocked on his door with the boy and said they saw cracks in his chimney that needed to be repaired. He offered to fill in the holes for $700 to $800, and the homeowner agreed.

The pair got onto the roof and dismantled part of the chimney and told the victim the job now would cost $3,800 instead of the original price.

The homeowner drove to Wells Fargo in Macungie to withdraw the money but was discouraged by the suspicious teller. The man told the trooper that due to the teller’s intervention, he didn’t withdraw the money.

Trooper Max Seiler examined the work done by Burke and found it to be of poor quality, with holes patched with caulking material in an attempt to scam the victim out of $3,800.

Burke was free on $40,000 bail to await a hearing after arraignment Friday night before District Judge Andrea Book in Reading Central Central Court. He faces charges of home improvement fraud, theft by deception, criminal mischief and related counts.

The son is facing similar charges, but it was unclear if he had been detained.

Troopers asked anyone who had contact with Burke or experienced similar home improvement fraud to contact Seiler at 610-378-4011 or mseiler@ pa.gov.