Feb 6, 2011 By Amy Revak 2 min read

A Uniontown man is facing charges of theft for allegedly completing only $20,000 of work on an elderly woman’s house, although he was paid $58,000 for the repairs. Barry J. Weasenforth, 41, of 1 Eighth St. was charged by Uniontown police Detective Donald M. Gmitter with theft by deception, theft by failure to make required disposition of funds and receiving stolen property.

According to an affidavit of probable cause, Weasenforth, owner of Weasenforth Home Improvements in Uniontown, received two checks – one for $50,000 and another in the amount of $8,000 – from the late Bonnie Rocheck to make repairs to her house at 80 Murray Ave. For the first check, Weasenforth accompanied Rocheck to the bank, and he endorsed the $50,000 check and cashed it on the spot.

Rocheck’s nephew, Jeffrey Rocheck, became suspicious of the payments because they were made to Weasenforth and not his company,

Some repairs were indeed done, including installation of a small bathroom on the first floor, the installation of 15 windows, the kitchen was painted, a new countertop was installed and new carpet was installed on the staircase and upstairs hallway. Police said several other contractors said the work should have cost about $20,000.

Jeffrey Rocheck ended up selling the home for $12,500 to an investor because the insurance company dropped insurance on the house because of its condition. The roof needed replaced, the front and back porches were collapsing and eaves were rotted, the affidavit states.

Jeffrey Rocheck discovered shortly after his aunt’s death that she had $1,025 in two checking accounts, despite having received a $100,000 payout from her husband’s life insurance policy less than a year before.

Jeffrey Rocheck said his aunt was 75 years old when she received the money, and was “suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, and was unskilled in her financial matters,” the affidavit states.

Following his arraignment before Magisterial District Judge Michael Metros, Weasenforth was ordered to pay $25,000, 10 percent bond to avoid incarceration at the Fayette County Prison.

A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Feb. 15.

before Metros.