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  Attorney General James and State Police Superintendent Steven G. James Announce Indictment of Washington County Couple for Defrauding Homeowners
  

  The following describes a pending government action that has been formally brought by a government agency but has not yet been resolved. We are providing a summary of the government’s allegations, which have not yet been proven.

  
  

  John McClure and Sarah Chambers Charged with Defrauding More Than a Dozen Homeowners Out of Over $1.5 Million Dollars
  
  McClure and Chambers Allegedly Used Stolen Funds to Pay for Trips to Casinos and Purchase Vehicles

  
  

  July 2, 2025
  
  NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James and State Police Superintendent Steven G. James today announced the arrest and arraignment of John McClure, 44, and his wife, Sarah Chambers, 38, of Granville, New York, for allegedly operating a massive contractor fraud scheme in Washington and Warren Counties that defrauded more than a dozen upstate homeowners out of over $1.5 million. The 12-count indictment, unsealed in Washington County Court before Judge Kelly S. McKeighan, charges McClure and Chambers with fraudulently obtaining over $1.2 million in home improvement payments from over a dozen homeowners. A second four-count indictment, unsealed in Warren County Court before the Honorable Robert A. Smith, charges McClure with stealing over $300,000 from four additional homeowners.  

  
  

  The charges are the result of a joint investigation by the Office of the Attorney General’s (OAG) Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau (CEFC) and the New York State Police (NYSP). As set forth in the indictments and statements made at arraignment, McClure and Chambers are charged with fraudulently obtaining more than $1.5 million from more than a dozen New York homeowners between September 2019 and August 2023. During that time, McClure allegedly advertised his services on Facebook, Google, Angie’s List, Porch.com, and other websites, using various business names including McClure and Son Constructions, McClure and Sons Construction, JM Escavation (sic) and Demolition Services, and JM & Son Excavation and Demolition. McClure’s advertisements offered home improvement services including home builds and renovations, excavation, and garage, roof, and deck construction.  
  
  
  
  McClure allegedly solicited large deposits upfront for home improvement work but then never performed the work, failed to deliver materials he claimed to have purchased with the deposits, and refused to issue refunds to homeowners. Much of the work that was performed by McClure was so substandard that it had to be torn down and rebuilt by other, qualified contractors. After receiving deposits, but before completing agreed upon phases of work, McClure would allegedly demand more payments for additional work, such as mold remediation or roof replacement, which was either not necessary or never performed. In one instance, after accepting a large deposit to begin a project, McClure allegedly falsely claimed his bank account had been “hacked” and the money stolen, when in reality, the money had been spent on personal expenses and used to cover other projects.
  
  
  
  Chambers allegedly participated in the scheme by serving as a fake reference to homeowners for McClure and Sons Construction and by drafting contracts and architectural plans for projects that were never completed. Chambers is also alleged to have filed business certificates in order to open bank accounts to receive homeowner funds, and she is further alleged to have withdrawn cash from the accounts at McClure’s request. Chambers allegedly deposited a check that falsely appeared to be a customer’s payment to McClure and Sons Construction into one of the business accounts and then withdrew funds from the account before the bank discovered that the check was counterfeit.

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