Attorney General's News Release
October 4, 2005
Attorney General Nixon secures $22,000 judgment against Camden County man for shoddy asphalt work
Camdenton, Mo. — A Camden County man who did substandard asphalt paving and threatened and coerced consumers to pay for work they never requested must repay more than $22,000 in restitution under a consent judgment obtained by Attorney General Jay Nixon.
The judgment, obtained in Camden County Circuit Court, orders Jeffery C. Sawyer, of Camdenton, to pay $22,542 in restitution to five customers in Camden County who hired him for various asphalt jobs. In requesting the judgment, Nixon said that Sawyer charged customers for unauthorized work and then threatened to tear out all work — both authorized and unauthorized — if the customer didn't pay. Sawyer did business as J&S Paving and Asphalt Paving and Slurry Seal.
Sawyer also contracted with consumers to lay three to four inches of asphalt and then only put down a single inch, and is reported to have stopped work on projects halfway through and refused to finish the job unless the customer paid additional money. Sawyer also refused to honor written warranties on his work, Nixon said.
"Consumers paid good money to Mr. Sawyer for a new parking lot or driveway, but ended up getting shoddy, unfinished and overpriced work instead," Nixon said. "There's no place in Missouri for individuals who do business like this. My best advice for them is to hit the road."
Sawyer must also pay the state $6,000 to cover the cost of investigating and litigating the case, and is barred from owning, operating or working for an asphalt paving business until April 2008. He also remains liable for any new complaints that may arise for the next 90 days.
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