(La Porte, IN) - A local contractor is accused of accepting payment without finishing the job.

Tommy Tipton, 44, is charged in La Porte Circuit Court with Level 6 felony fraud.

According to court documents, La Porte County Police were contacted in late September by a Wanatah area woman claiming to be a victim.  She reported paying $6,500 in early July for Tipton to extend the plumbing in her house to a pole barn.

The woman told investigators the job was about one-third completed when Tipton stopped showing up and quit responding to her phone calls and text messages, police said.

Eventually, the woman reported Tipton to the La Porte County Plan Commission, which suspended his building license, police said. 

The La Porte man could face anywhere from a six month to 30 month sentence.