A Washington County contractor accused of home improvement fraud in Millvale is awaiting trial on similar charges in South Fayette, according to court records.
Millvale police charged James R. Nunamaker, 62, of North Strabane on March 18 with felony counts of deceptive or fraudulent business practices and false statements to induce an agreement for home improvement services and a misdemeanor count of forgery.
According to a criminal complaint, a woman told borough police she hired Nunamaker in November to replace a skylight on her Grant Avenue building, which he failed to complete. She had paid $9,000 toward a quoted price of $11,400.
Nunamaker is scheduled for a nonjury trial May 20 on charges South Fayette police filed in April 2025. In that case, he is charged with seven felonies including receiving stolen property, theft, deceptive business practices and identity theft.
In that case, a couple told South Fayette police they hired Nunamaker in January 2024 to build a patio at the back of their home for $50,000, according to a criminal complaint. They were about $135,000 into the project when they fired Nunamaker a year later, and found that he used one of their credit cards from February 2024 until they closed it in August 2024 for numerous unauthorized charges, including at restaurants and bars.
Nunamaker’s attorney in the South Fayette case, Louis Emmi, did not respond to a request for comment. It was not clear if Emmi also was representing Nunamaker in the Millvale case.
The Millvale building owner, who also owns a business, contacted borough police in December, according to the criminal complaint filed by police Chief Tim Komoroski. She told police that Nunamaker was not buying the items she paid for and not completing the work she also had paid for in advance.
According to the complaint, Nunamaker gave the woman an estimate on Nov. 16 to remove an existing skylight and replace it with a more modern electric skylight.
On Nov. 19, the woman signed a contract and paid a $7,000 deposit on the $11,400 bid. Work was to start Nov. 20 and be finished Nov. 24.
The woman asked Nunamaker for proof that he was insured before starting work. While Nunamaker told her he was insured, he later told police he never had insurance and denied ever saying he did, the complaint states.
Nunamaker later gave the woman an insurance certificate for someone else’s company. While he told police the other company was going to help him do the work, the company told police it only gave Nunamaker an estimate and was never contracted to work on the woman’s building.
Nunamaker gave the woman a receipt from a West Virginia supply company marked as paid that he claimed was for the skylight and materials to install it. However, the supply company told police it was only a quote, that no order was ever placed and that it does not mark bills paid that way, the complaint states.
Nunamaker later told police he had never ordered the skylight, according to the complaint.
Nunamaker came to the woman’s building on Nov. 20 with a scissor lift that could not reach the roof, the complaint states. A couple days later, materials to cover the roof were dropped off.
No work had been completed on Nov. 26 when Nunamaker said he needed another $2,000 to buy the skylight. She gave him the money, realizing later he had given her a paid receipt for it, the complaint states.
With work still not started, the woman refused Nunamaker’s demand a few days later for an additional $4,000 he said was for insulation, according to the complaint.
After the woman continued to call Nunamaker and ask about the work being completed, Nunamaker accessed her roof by trespassing on a neighbor’s building with ladders, the complaint states. He removed the old skylight and threw it into her yard, shattering it, and left the building with a 45-by-45-inch hole in the roof.
Nunamaker did not cover the hole or complete any work by Dec. 15, when the woman contacted police, the complaint states.
According to the complaint, Nunamaker told Komoroski he was doing a favor for the woman’s son and not making any money on the job. While he said he would have the work done in five days, Komoroski allowed him until Dec. 30.
Police responded to the woman’s business on Dec. 20, the complaint states. The woman told police she began arguing with Nunamaker after he told her he did not have the new skylight or the insurance proof she had sought.
The woman told police her insurance company advised her not to allow an uninsured contractor to work on her building.
When Komoroski asked Nunamaker why his crew didn’t work on the woman’s building, Nunamaker said they were Mexicans and that Immigration and Customs Enforcement had gotten them, the complaint states.
Komoroski said Nunamaker called him on Jan. 5 and asked if the woman would not pursue charges against him if he ordered and provided the skylight. According to the complaint, Komorski told Nunamaker he had clearly deceived the woman and damaged her building by leaving it open to the elements.
Nunamaker had not been arraigned on the Millvale charges as of March 23, according to court records.