Caledonia contractor charged in separate case

Gerald Dinda said a home-addition project at his Caledonia property stopped after he paid contractor James Ferdon $80,000, leaving what he described to FOX6 as a “gaping hole” next to the house. FOX6 reported on May 31 that Dinda hired Ferdon, identified as being with Affordable Building LLC, in 2024 for work that was only partially completed. (fox6now.com) A year and a half later, the same contractor is now charged in a separate criminal case tied to a Waterford home-construction project. The Racine County District Attorney’s Office declined to bring criminal charges in Dinda’s case, FOX6 said. ### Who is involved in the Caledonia complaint? Gerald Dinda is the homeowner at the center of the Caledonia dispute, and James Ferdon is the contractor he told FOX6 he hired for the addition. (fox6now.com) FOX6 identified Ferdon as being with Affordable Building LLC. Dinda told FOX6 that the job deteriorated after subcontractors said they were not getting paid. “Those people never got paid,” Dinda said, according to the station, adding that some had threatened liens before deciding against that step. ### What does Dinda say happened to the project? FOX6 reported that concrete for the addition’s foundation remained buried in Dinda’s yard after the project stalled. (fox6now.com) Dinda told the station he received repeated excuses — “delay, delay, delay” — as the work failed to move forward. Dinda told FOX6 he later spent another $30,000 to clean up and repair the site. (fox6now.com) He said another company covered the hole and landscaped the area, and he also had to redo siding because the original material was no longer available. ### Why wasn’t there a criminal case in Racine County? The Racine County District Attorney’s Office declined to pursue criminal charges tied to Dinda’s complaint, FOX6 reported. (fox6now.com) The station said the office told Dinda it did not believe it could prove the case to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt. That left Dinda without a criminal prosecution in his own case, even as the contractor he hired later appeared in court on different allegations elsewhere in Racine County, according to FOX6’s report. (fox6now.com) ### What are the charges in the separate Waterford case? FOX6 reported that Ferdon now faces one felony theft-by-contractor count and three misdemeanor charges in a separate Waterford home-construction case. (fox6now.com) The station said the criminal complaint alleges that a mortgage lender paid Affordable Building nearly $200,000 through a series of construction-loan draw requests for a single-family home. The complaint, as summarized by FOX6, said multiple subcontractors who performed work or supplied materials remained unpaid or only partially paid. Court documents cited by the station said construction funds instead went to credit-card bills, vehicle payments and retail purchases, with about $100,000 allegedly misappropriated. (fox6now.com) ### What did Ferdon say when approached? FOX6 reported that Ferdon declined an opportunity to speak with its Contact 6 team while heading into the courtroom. The station did not report any further public comment from him in the story. ### What happens next for the people in these cases? (fox6now.com) The May 31 FOX6 report leaves Dinda’s complaint in the position of a dispute that Racine County prosecutors chose not to charge criminally. The separate Waterford prosecution is the case now moving through court, with Ferdon facing one felony and three misdemeanor counts, according to FOX6’s account and Wisconsin court references. (fox6now.com)