Riverside Home Repair Scam Leads to Arrest: Police

RIVERSIDE, IL — A Chicago contractor is accused of collecting a $250 deposit to do repairs to an in-ground pool at a house in Riverside, but then never showed up to do the work. At the time of his arrest, Christopher Baker, 29, was out on bond in an armed robbery case in Evergreen Park, Riverside police said.

Last year, a resident in the 400 block of Repton Road filed a complaint about Baker with the Riverside Police Department. The resident went back and forth on the issue until the end of 2019, according to a Riverside police report. Baker was arrested when he stepped outside a courtroom Thursday in Chicago.

Last July, Baker was arrested in connection with an armed robbery in the 9200 block of Western Avenue in Evergreen Park. Riverside police are asking the court to revoke his bond in the armed robbery case. In Riverside, he is charged with one count of home repair fraud.

"This department is committed to arresting dishonest contractors who prey on hardworking homeowners by skipping out with their deposits," Riverside Police Chief Tom Weitzel said in a news release. "What's even more disturbing is that his company, Got Splash Pools, had already been flagged on numerous social media accounts as a scammer."