Ramsey County Attorney charging local roofing contractor with wage theft, fraud

A local roofing contractor is now facing criminal charges over allegations of wage theft, insurance fraud and tax evasion.

Ramsey County Attorney John Choi on Wednesday announced multiple charges, which he said stem from a nearly yearlong multi-agency investigation, against three owners of Bayvista, Inc.

Charging documents detail how a subcontractor on a public housing project underpaid workers despite clearly knowing the actual pay rate.

Choi says seven workers cooperated and helped lead to these charges. However, officials believe there are around two dozen victims.

While the investigation is still ongoing, Choi says the actions amounted to around $250,000 in stolen wages.

In announcing the charges, Choi highlighted “the loss to the workers as well as what it does to the industry,” adding, “It’s just simply not fair that subcontractors can have these really low bids. I think as a society we need to think about that, that when we procure contracts, oftentimes the law talks about the lowest responsible bidder in these government contracts but what we really also need to be thinking about is the responsible aspect of the bidding process.”

“If we charge these cases now, we address these crimes now, future businesses will never go down these paths themselves,” St. Paul Police Chief Axel Henry said. “They will never not cooperate with the process and not advocate for the individual and not do what’s right out there.”

Choi noted his office has many similar cases it is already working on and plans to charge in the near future.

He urged any victims to call his office at 651-266-3371.
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