Joseph Ford, 55, of Worcester Township. (Credit: Montgomery County DA)
Joseph Ford owns 1st Call Electric LLC on Germantown Pike
A Worcester Township electrical contractor has admitted to bilking 74 customers in six counties out of nearly $500,000 in a home improvement scheme and will be sentenced at a later date.
Joseph Ford, 55, owner of 1st Call Electric LLC, which was run out of his rented residence on the 3400 block of Germantown Pike, pleaded guilty on Monday in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court to 74 counts of deceptive business practices, 35 of which are felonies, according to court records. He also pleaded to writing bad checks.
The incidents occurred between 2020 and 2023 in the wake of the pandemic, police said. Of the 74 customers scammed, 35 of them were over the age of 60 and the majority had health issues requiring generators for treatment, according to The Reporter.
Investigators allege Ford did not deliver generators electrical panels or do repair work that was paid for in advance via his electrical installation services. Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said Ford would take large deposits from each homeowner and never did any electrical work or installation.
Thefts ranged from $1,400 to $16,450, authorities said.
Authorities caught on to Ford’s scheme in August 2022 when two Lower Providence Township residents reported home improvement fraud by Ford, police said. As the investigation continued, more victims beyond Lower Providence developed and it became a county investigation.
Ford will likely have to pay back the $500,000 to his victims, per the report. Victims affected reside in Montgomery, Bucks, Berks, Chester, Delaware and Philadelphia counties, per the criminal complaint filed by Montgomery County and Lower Providence detectives. There were 39 victims from Montgomery County, 18 from Bucks, and five from Delaware County.
He is free on bail pending sentencing and prosecutors want Ford to serve time at state prison over county jail.
“This is a case about greed and deception. The defendant took hundreds of thousands of dollars from more than 70 victims and then didn’t deliver on the product and services that he promised them,” said Harding, who handled the case with co-prosecutor Tanner C. Beck, according to The Reporter.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
