'Granite Gangster' hit with 6 new felonies, including contracting without a license, theft

An Ormond Beach man who calls himself the "Granite Gangster" is facing six additional felonies after three customers said his home remodeling business did incomplete and shoddy work after the 2022 hurricanes, then abandoned their homes without returning their money.

The State Attorney's Office initially charged Charles D. "Chuck" Ogden in December 2022 with a single count of contracting without a license. On Wednesday, it brought the new charges after former customers of Ogden's Holly Hill kitchen and bath remodeling business − then known as East Coast Countertops − made repeated complaints, including for a News-Journal story published in November.

The most serious count is an organized scheme to defraud victims of more than $50,000, a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

There are two charges attached to each of the three victims' families: grand theft of more than $20,000, a second-degree felony that carries up to 15 years in prison and a $10,000 fine; and contracting without a license, a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Ogden, 48, pleaded not guilty to the charges on Wednesday, court records show. Aaron Delgado, Ogden's attorney, reached by email Wednesday, declined to comment.

Ogden's business is now known as Daytona Construction and Remodeling LLP.

Victims: 'A predator has been stopped'

Melanie Cain, whose Port Orange home was flooded by Hurricane Ian at a time when she was headed into brain surgery, hired Ogden in October 2022, and his crews did several days of work on the home before Hurricane Nicole arrived Nov. 10. After that, she said Ogden's company abandoned the work − some of which had to be redone − and she later fired him.

In all, she paid Ogden $34,200.

Ogden and Cain each filed for protective orders against each other, alleging stalking. Both were dismissed.

Ogden has an ongoing libel/defamation of character claim against Cain. He is seeking more than $50,000, arguing she filed false reports with police and the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation and engaged in a "malicious and vicious Facebook campaign" against him.

Cain says she is trying to right a wrong.

In a text Wednesday, Cain wrote she is thankful for the assistant state attorneys and investigators who worked on the case, singling out Port Orange police Det. Lance Morris.

"After 15 months of daily phone calls to the State Attorney's Office, they finally heard my voice," Cain said. "I hope that all past victims will find peace in knowing the community is in good hands and is safer because a predator has been stopped."

Melissa and Patrick Herlehy paid $48,000 on a $52,227 contract with Ogden's son, Charles Ogden Jr., and his business, Ceejay's Remodeling, which lists the same address as his father's business. The Herlehys say the work was substandard and needs to be redone.

Ogden Jr. sued each of the Herlehys in separate small-claims cases seeking the additional $4,227. Both of his claims were dismissed by two separate judges.

Melissa Herlehy said she doesn't expect to see any restitution but made her complaint against Ogden to prevent other families from being defrauded as she was.

As there have been civil and criminal complaints against Ogden predating the three victims from 2022, Herlehy said she was puzzled as to how he could have been in a position to defraud her family.

"We kept asking how could this man and his family continue to do this for over 20 years, fake contracts, fake licensing, fake contractors, and no one ever caught on. It wasn't until everybody was able to come together as a community after a major disaster and support each other," she said in a text message.

Patrick Herlehy said in an email he hopes the new criminal charges will put "an end to the constant intimidation of being threatened with small claims lawsuits from Mr. Ogden and associates," calling it a stressful time, due to other circumstances as well.

"I lost my son to cancer, my father recently passed away, and my house has to be redone, but the most important thing here is we did not give up," Patrick Herlehy said. "If I can prevent Mr. Ogden and associates from victimizing the next person, I did the right thing."

A third victim, retired and disabled Marine Tammi Rohring of Edgewater did not respond to a message Wednesday. She previously told The News-Journal she paid Ogden $25,000 for work that was not complete before he abandoned the job. She said some of that work will have to be redone.

“Unless I go through a criminal proceeding with him, I’m not going to see anything," she told the News-Journal in November. "Restitution is my only hope of recovering (my $25,000)."

History of criminality

This isn't the first time Ogden has run afoul of the law.

He has twice been convicted of misdemeanor contracting without a license. In one case, he received 12 months of probation and paid $1,300 restitution to his customer, while in the other, he was required to pay $2,800 in restitution. Both victims said he cost them substantially more.

After a 2002 conviction for the sale of cocaine, Ogden served more than three years in the Florida Department of Corrections.

Earlier in December, Ogden lost a civil case brought by dissatisfied customers. A judge ruled a South Daytona couple should be repaid $12,950 by Ogden.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: 'Granite Gangster' facing 7 felonies alleging fraud after hurricanes