Bilked by builder, residents turn to council
Governing body asked
to contact prosecutor
to urge pursuit of case

BY KRISTIN CHANDLER

Staff Writer

LITTLE SILVER — Mayor Suzanne S. Castleman has agreed to do what she can to aid borough residents who say they have fallen victim to a contractor’s false promises.

Castleman said she would send a letter to the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office urging it to continue its investigation into Sterling Builders, a company owned by borough resident Robert Socha.

The residents told the council that Socha accepted payment and, in most cases, began work on their houses, only to abandon the projects, leaving them far lighter in the pocket and with torn-apart homes.

Several of the parties who say they were swindled by Socha filed complaints against the builder, and then began meeting with the county prosecutor’s office, where they were assured that the situation would be investigated. Socha has declared Sterling Builders bankrupt, which could leave the neighbors he is accused of bilking unable to collect any reimbursement for his unfinished work.

Four borough residents, Andy Russo, Laura Pair, Robert Peschler and Elizabeth Cohen, attended Monday’s Borough Council meeting and requested the council’s help with their troubles — both with Sterling and the ongoing investigation.

Pair, who said she paid Socha $77,000 of a planned $101,000 contract, offered a summary of the events and requested that the council encourage the prosecutor’s office to keep up the investigation. The impetus for the request, according to Pair, came when Socha moved from his home on Queens Drive. She said she was unsure of where he may now be living and believes he may have moved out of state.

"My fear is, with him potentially leaving the state, they might not pursue him as strongly," Pair told the council. "I’m looking for a little political pressure — this is not a little homeowner’s improvement gone wrong.

"There are four of us here tonight and others in Little Silver. This is a huge scam he’s perpetrated."

Russo, whose home remains as Socha left it when he halted construction — with one-third of the rooms gutted — agreed. "Our hands are tied, basically, because when he leaves the state, there’s no recourse," he said.

"I just want to be treated fairly, give me what I paid for," he pleaded.

Cohen, who addressed the council in tears and left immediately afterward, said she had taken pictures of the moving trucks outside Socha’s home in an attempt to offer investigators a way to later track Socha. Stacy Socha, Robert Socha’s wife, tried to physically strike her in order to prevent her from photographing the trucks, Cohen said.

"All I wanted is a record of where he’s going," Cohen said. "It’s been two years and my family has been affected greatly."

Though Castleman said the council isn’t able to become involved in the legal proceedings, she agreed to write a letter stating her concern for the borough’s residents.

"I don’t want to see the ball dropped," she said.

"What’s been frustrating to us is how slowly the hands of justice move," Pair said. "The biggest frustration is that they keep re-assigning our detectives."

Peschler, who had actually used Sterling Builders in the past, gave Socha a check for 50 percent of the estimate for the new screened in porch he wanted, only to have the check cashed, and no work ever done.

"He took the deposit and never came back, never swung a hammer," Peschler said.

Peschler began documenting Socha’s reasons for failing to begin work soon after the check was cashed, and currently has a list of 13 reasons. He said Socha told him different reasons every week, offering everything from problems with office workers and health issues with his adopted children to deaths in the family and drunken contractors as excuses why Sterling Builders couldn’t begin work.

Pair said she was told many of the same things, months before.

Before deciding to continue with a case against Socha, Pair said three different lawyers advised her against it.

"It’s very doubtful we’ll see any money," she said. "But there has to be a consequence for people who do this. It’s worth my money and my time because there has to be a consequence."