Local Landscaper Allegedly Ripped Off 11 Families, Never Completed Work

A landscaper operating in Contra Costa County is facing 34 felony and misdemeanor charges for allegedly taking exorbitant down payments from prospective clients and never completing the work, officials from the district attorney’s office said Friday.

Adan “Adam” Rivas, 34, of Concord, is alleged to have defrauded 11 families in Danville, San Ramon, Alamo, Lafayette, Orinda and Walnut Creek, prosecutors said. He has a $139,000 warrant for his arrest.

In May last year, one family was so perturbed by his actions, they created the website adamrivastreescam.com in the hopes of reaching other potential victims.

A request for comment from the family was not immediately returned.

According to a statement on the website, Rivas and his crew, which several victims said they believed are his family, came to their neighborhood and convinced them to hire him for their landscaping needs.

“My husband is undergoing chemotherapy and we wanted to make changes to our backyard so that it would be a more usable space for our daughters and for us,” the statement reads. “We were foolish enough to give him two hefty deposits to buy materials and we have nothing but an unfinished backyard to show for it.”

The family made numerous attempts to contact Rivas and his crew to no avail, according to the website.

Reviews on Yelp show a similar modus operandi.

Commenters complained of back yards torn up and left “a huge mess,” elderly neighbors who had driveways ripped up and never repaved, and dozens of calls or text messages that went unanswered.

It’s a pattern that appears to repeat itself as more victims come forward, District Attorney Mark Peterson said.

“These families are looking to hire someone to help them,” Peterson said in a statement. “Instead, they are getting nothing but messed up yards and depleted bank accounts.”

Deputy District Attorney William Murphy said the bids would often range from $8,000 to $12,000 and Rivas would ask for down payments of $3,000 to $5,000. Contractors are only legally able to take 10 percent of the estimated cost as a down payment, Murphy said.

“Sometimes he would do additional negotiations for more work and take more down payment monies,” Murphy said.

The website lists several aliases for the landscaping service such as “New View Tree Care,” “New View Tree Service,” “One Way Tree Service,” “View Maintenance & Landscaping,” “View Landscaping & Tree Service,” and “High Tech Tree Care.”

Attempts to reach Rivas were unsuccessful.

For each alleged victim, Rivas faces felony charges of diverting construction funds and misdemeanor charges of entering into unlawful home improvement contracts and failing to secure worker’s compensation and insurance.

Murphy said the district attorney’s office believes there are additional unreported victims.

People who have recently dealt with Rivas are encouraged to contact Investigator Al Cofer at acofer@contracostada.org.

--Bay City News

--Image courtesy of Yelp page here.

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