FLOYDS KNOBS, Ind. — A Floyds Knobs man was arrested Wednesday after he was accused of charging a homeowner thousands of dollars to fix her HVAC system, then never doing the job.
Indiana State Police in Sellersburg began their investigation in December after a homeowner reported she paid John Aaron McKinley, 49, over $10,000 to repair her heating and air conditioning system.
McKinley is the owner of McKinley Heating and Air, according to an ISP news release.
Investigators believe the homeowners, Keith and Marilyn Crumbo, were told their entire HVAC system needed to be replaced. McKinley removed the old system after requesting and receiving almost $10,000 in payment.
The Crumbos said McKinley first told them he needed $1,250 to order the unit and distribution box, and another $8,000 to pay for the inside and outside unit.
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"He said he 'needed two checks' so we gave him, so now were talking, that's when we went to $9,250," Marilyn said.
After constant communication through text and phone calls about updates on the order, the Crumbos said it was hard getting McKinley to respond, or at times even show up.
At that point they knew something was off.
"I said we need our money back, I don't want to hear any excuses anymore; we need our money back," Marilyn said.
However, McKinley never returned to complete the job. The Crumbos told law enforcement they were temporarily heating their house with a wood stove, expecting repairs to be made before cold temperatures set in.
The last thing they wanted to do was call Indiana State Police. McKinley was someone they thought they could trust, due to past business over the years.
"He did put our other unit in and did a good job; when something went wrong with it he was always there to fix it," Keith said.
ISP detectives confirmed their findings with multiple interviews and by reviewing bank transactions. All information gathered during the investigation was sent to the Washington County Prosecutor's Office.
On Wednesday, the Washington County Circuit Court issued a warrant for McKinley's arrest. He was charged with theft, a level 6 felony. Troopers located and arrested John McKinley and transported him to the Washington County Jail without incident.
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