Solar Installer Indicted for Stealing Funds, Not Following Through on Projects
Daniel Jarrett Ridlinghafer has been indicted on 11 counts of bank fraud related to his ownership of Tucson Solar Pros. Photo courtesy of X, @DanSolarCity.
$700,000 in Loans… But No Follow-Through
Charges stem from Ridlinghafer allegedly using his company, Tucson Solar Pros, to get homeowners to apply for credit union loans to pay for expensive solar installations, according to his indictment. Instead of installing the solar power systems as promised, Ridlinghafer allegedly abandoned projects, absconding with the money homeowners had received from loans.
The federal government’s investigation claims Ridlinghafer used loan proceeds to either complete some older projects or to pay his own personal expenses.
Multiple Civil Lawsuits
Before he was indicted, Ridlinghafer was involved in multiple lawsuits, and his license was revoked, as reported by KVOA, a Tucson, Ariz. media outlet.
Tucson Old Pueblo Credit Union CEO Vernon Babilon shared some details about the case, saying, “We have ones going back to August of last year that have been fully funded, and there has been no action whatsoever on the installation of their solar program,” said Babilon to KVOA.
In his response via a statement sent to the same station, Ridlinghafer tried to shift the blame to the credit union, saying, “The biggest mistake we’ve made was using one financial institution for all financed solar projects. Seventy-five% of our business is financed, and I now realize that we unknowingly put our company and all our customers, at risk. For that mistake and any other mistakes made, I apologize.”
License Revocation
In the meantime, the Arizona Registrar of Contractors revoked Ridlinghafer’s business license.
In total, at least 25 people signed solar installation contracts with Tucson Solar Pros, but the company never started the projects, according to the criminal complaint.
Mark Melcher, one of the first victims of this fraud, said he signed the contract with TSP in May 2021 and pays $400 monthly, along with $7,000 “finder’s fee” to the credit union that he says was not disclosed to him beforehand.
“To me, I have enough to show they intentionally misled me. I believe they misled those other 39 people. Somebody’s overlooking or not doing their job”, Melcher said to KVOA.
If found guilty, Ridlinghafer could face up to 50 years behind bars, as a conviction for bank fraud carries a maximum penalty of 30 years and a million-dollar fine, while conviction for mail and wire fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, along with $250,000 fine.
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