Chatham woman yet to be paid back nearly 3 years after a contractor ripped her off
CHICAGO (CBS) – A Chatham woman thought she got justice. A City of Chicago program helped her dominate in court against a contractor that ripped her off.
But CBS 2 has learned her win didn't stop others from losing. Morning Insider Lauren Victory took us inside the homeowner's disappointment.
"The water would come in and I'd see the lines behind the walls," said Chasiti Bragg.
She discovered that leak came from her roof, which was damaged in a 2019 hailstorm.
"When I finally got the insurance check, I vetted three companies," Bragg said. "Or so I thought."
She went with a recommendation by a friend: Philco Group. The company's owner Anthony Phillips cashed her nearly $3,500 check right away, a deposit for 50% of the project.
But Bragg's roof sat untouched for a month and a half.
"So I asked for my money back, so I could go with a different roofer," she said. "No response."
She filed a home repair complaint with Chicago's Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection.
"They would work actually on behalf of the homeowner, take the person to court, get fines and get restitution for the homeowner," Bragg said.
The process seemed to work. The city ordered Phillips to refund Bragg and hit him with more than $30,000 in city citations including operating without a business license.
"I was thrilled that he would have to pay the consequences for what he did to me," she said.
But Phillips hasn't paid a dime. It's been almost three years.
The homeowner tried to think of ways the city could compel the contractor to pay. She asked about seizing a tax refund or placing a lien on his home.
"And they mentioned, 'Well no,'" she said. "'Perhaps you can hire a private attorney.'"
It was disappointing. So was our visit to the County Club Hills address listed on Phillips' paperwork.
It turned out the home went into foreclosure and someone else now lives there.
State records show his business Philco Group Enterprise and Philco Design Group are defunct, but we found a third company he owns.
It's registered to an address in Hyde Park that took us to a UPS store. Unit 466, aka Philco Residential, was created two weeks after the contractor was ordered to pay Bragg and the city.
This is what she hoped to avoid.
"If they don't enforce the judgment, what good is it doing me?" Bragg said.
And what good is it doing others? Several alleged victims posted complaints against Phillips online, many after the roof refund saga began.
CBS 2 discovered the city granted Phillips a general contractor's license, just a few months after he was ordered to cough up restitution and fines.
So did he ever pay those penalties from 2020? The Department of Finance had days to figure that out and tell us. We still haven't gotten an answer.
CBS 2 was able to reach Phillips by phone and the contractor said he was unaware of the judgment against him.
