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Uploaded: Monday, December 10, 2012, 2:34 PM
Atherton: Contractor charged with six felonies
Richard Smith accused of grand theft, obtaining money by false pretenses
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by Renee Batti
Almanac Staff
A building contractor is due in court Dec. 20 to enter a plea on felony grand theft and other charges stemming from work he did for an Atherton resident.
Richard Smith, 54, of Redding was arrested Oct. 30 by Atherton police and is accused of a number of crimes allegedly intended to defraud the resident out of about $400,000, according to Police Lt. Joe Wade.
The court complaint identifies the victim as Larry Lowry, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Karen Guidotti. Smith was performing work on property in the 100 block of Stockbridge Avenue, Wade said.
Smith faces three charges of grand theft, one charge of diversion of funds, one charge of making or passing a fictitious check, and one count of obtaining money by false pretenses, Guidotti said. All are felony charges.
Smith appeared in court earlier this week with attorney Robert Mezzetti and the case was continued to Dec. 20, Guidotti said.
Although Mezzetti said he has not yet been formally retained, he said he is reviewing the case and is likely to represent Smith.
"The indication I have from the limited investigation I've conducted is that the charges are ... baseless," he told the Almanac.
He said Smith has never been in trouble with the law before and has a good reputation in his field. "It's a vindictive person that is driving this claim," he said, calling the matter a "deal gone bad."
Smith posted a $75,000 bail bond and is out of custody, Guidotti said.Are you receiving Express, our free daily e-mail edition? See a sample and sign-up for Express.
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Posted by Evans, a resident of the Palo Alto Hills neighborhood, on Dec 11, 2012 at 2:27 pm That dirt bag "contractor" did the same thing to us. We are out over $200,0000 and that doesn't include the liens we are still fighting from subs he didn't pay. There should be a special place in .... for him
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Posted by Taken, a resident of Portola Valley, on Dec 11, 2012 at 3:22 pm Those guys weren't the only ones whose homes he destroyed. Mezzitti must be as much of a scumbag as Smith. Smith has our money and we have water pouring in from around our windows, under the floor, everywhere. He destroyed our dream home.
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Posted by Sub, a resident of another community, on Dec 11, 2012 at 4:10 pm Don't forget about us. Ripped off 50+ of us. Stole $27K+ of my money. Right out of my familys pocket. No Xmass for us this year. But, at least have home, family and a business which is better than some of the others.
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Posted by Ducatigirl, a resident of the Old Palo Alto neighborhood, on Dec 11, 2012 at 6:05 pm Good grief! I have been ripped off by contractors before, but nothing of this magnitude! Sounds like he makes his living ripping other people off. Hopefully, now that one person has filed charges, other victims will follow suit and the judge will throw the book at him.
Similar, though less grand in scale, scams have happened around this area for decades. Most of these unscrupulous contractors get away with it. It is high time the law caught up with them.
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Posted by homeless, a resident of the Community Center neighborhood, on Dec 11, 2012 at 8:03 pm
homeless is a member (registered user) of Palo Alto Online cannot believe what i am reading. if that contractor is what is reported.... if all this is true... he must be charged accordingly and loose his license. i hope you guys joined the lawsuit, so that liens can be removed.
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