Former NC cop accused of stealing from customers after promising home repairs

CATAWBA COUNTY, N.C. — A former police officer is accused of stealing tens of thousands of dollars after promising to make home repairs.

Deputies in Catawba and Burke counties said Chris Collins owns a home remodeling company that took money for jobs but never put a hammer to nail. Channel 9′s Dave Faherty learned he gained people’s trust by flexing his law enforcement background.

Several people told Faherty on Tuesday that Collins’ background was part of why they hired him.

Court documents show some of the amounts people claimed to have lost, including one for $46,000.

Collins was arrested and has been charged with obtaining by false pretense by the Burke County Sheriff’s Office.

Kim Bolick said she trusted Collins after he replaced the roof of her home in Long View. But she said when she hired his company, CMC Home Solutions, to do a remodel of a family member’s home in Newton, he never did the work.

“We went to the bank to take out a loan because we don’t have $33,000 saved up,” Bolick said. “We’re going to have to pay the bank back this.”

Faherty went to the address for CMC Home Solutions in Valdese but no one came to the door Tuesday.

Collins’ neighbor said he hired him last year to redo his floors and kitchen. Like everyone Faherty spoke with, Chuck Montgomery said he paid a portion up front.

“He comes across and says he’s a good Christian man and a good family man and he was an ex-policeman. We called him over and had him do it and told us all the right stuff,” Montgomery said.

Bolick said Collins has stopped taking her calls after initially making excuses for not doing the work she hired him to do more than a year ago.

“It was just a never-ending story of good ol’ boy excuses that has just run amok,” she said.

Faherty found out from the City of Morganton that Collins worked for the police department from 2008 to 2012. He also worked for the Burke County Narcotics Task Force for a period of time.

Catawba County deputies believe there are several case there as well, and they’re asking anyone who hired Collins to call them at 828-465-8340.

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