CONROE – A Montgomery County woman said she’s devastated and still angry after she said a pool builder took more than $50,000 from her family.
“I’m devastated. I’m angry. I feel very violated. We trusted this man, and we trusted him with a lot of money,” said victim Beth Desilets.
Desilets is talking about Mark Mills, the Montgomery County pool builder who was supposed to build a hot tub in their backyard, but left the project incomplete.
Ryan Edwards and his wife said they got it even worse. The couple said they paid Mills more than $100,000 for a backyard pool that their five children would be able to enjoy for years to come. Instead, the couple said the project was never completed and his family was left with a dangerous, unfinished, cement hole in their backyard.
“We promised our five kids we would have a brand new backyard paradise for them to enjoy. A beautiful place to swim and enjoy and have for years to come. It never happened. This man took more than $100,000 from us and dug a hole and poured some concrete and then left that project unfinished,” Ryan said.
Now, at least 20 families say they were bilked out of tens of thousands of dollars by this pool builder and his St. Croix Custom Pools Company.
Mills, who is now being held on a $1 million bond, is charged with aggregated theft for over $300,000.
On Tuesday, Mills was brought into Montgomery County District Court 221 for a discovery hearing on the case, but his lawyer asked that the hearing be reset for January 11.
For now, Mills remains behind bars on the $1 million bond. It is expected he will go to trial sometime in May.
Until then, Desilets has just one wish.
“I want to see him go to prison for a very long time.. like 20 years. That would be justice for us,” Beth said.
