Contractor who took 500K in deposits but never started construction charged with felony theft

Linda Kim Brown, a contractor, faces felony theft and tax evasion charges after allegedly defrauding homeowners in Western Washington out of $500,000 for construction projects she never initiated. She has pleaded not guilty to four counts of first-degree theft and one count of filing a false tax return, with her trial scheduled for August 22 in Snohomish County Superior Court. The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries suspended her contractor registration following complaints from three victims in 2023. Brown collected significant down payments from homeowners but failed to start any construction, leading to losses of over $98,000, $165,000, and $310,000 for each victim. Despite reporting no income on her tax returns, investigators found she had deposited over $1.

5 million into her business accounts during the same period. Additionally, she failed to remit $72,400 in retail sales taxes collected from customers. The case underscores the challenges homeowners face when dealing with untrustworthy contractors. L&I encourages consumers to take precautions to avoid such scams.