Seattle Navy veteran scammed thousands in roof repair scheme

SEATTLE - An 83-year-old Navy veteran says he was scammed out of thousands of dollars after two men offered to fix his roof, only to leave behind extensive damage and a financial burden.

"They’ve totally destroyed the roof, essentially," said Richard Lanzner, who has lived in his North Seattle home since 1997.

The backstory:

Lanzner said it began two weeks ago when two men knocked on his door, offering to fix a couple of tiles where daylight was coming through. He agreed to pay $35 "just to sort of humor him and go away."

But the situation escalated when the men, who introduced themselves as Peter and George and spoke with Australian accents, brought a crew of five to inspect the roof. They told Lanzner he had a "structural problem" and quoted him $10,000 for repairs.

"Verbal contract, $8,500, so I said, ‘Okay, well, that's a lot.’ So I said, ‘I can do that.’ But again, no cash," Lanzner said.

He said the men demanded a deposit for equipment rental and pressured him to make transfers in other forms.

"Their faces got sullen when I again, I said, ‘Only on the credit card.’ So they started trying to convince me, ‘Well, how about a money line transfer?’" Lanzner said.

Dig deeper:

When the men later asked for a six-figure sum, Lanzner refused.

"I said, ‘Absolutely not,’" Lanzner recounted.

The crew left behind piles of shingles, nearly a dozen trash bags filled with roofing materials, and a large pile of wood in his backyard. Lanzner said his roof now has holes.

"I can see daylight up through my bathroom," Lanzner said. "Catastrophic. It is vandalism, malicious vandalism, because there's, there's no dialing this back, restoring it."

Lanzner filed a police report and notified his insurance company. His deductible is $5,000, and he worries about the impact as the rainy season approaches.

The veteran is mindful of the vulnerability older adults face and hopes sharing his experience will help prevent others from becoming victims.

What they're saying:

"It's exploitative, they’re looking for soft targets," Lanzner said. "Make sure that it's unsolicited and vetted completely from the otherwise just tell them they're not welcome."

The veteran urged homeowners to rely on insurance networks or vetted contractors. As for the scammers, he said he hopes to see them held accountable.

"I would hope I would see them in in court," Lanzner said. "I would tell the judge, ‘Whatever you do in addition to that, put them on ankle bracelet or monitor or something like that, while they're doing restitution.’"

FOX 13 Seattle has reached out to the police department, who say that because no money was ever exchanged, the case is considered malicious mischief, with charges pending.

We've also reached out to the veteran's home insurance regarding the situation. We'll update this story when we hear back.

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