A woman who works as a teacher in the Katy Independent School District outside Houston has been identified as one of two people accused in a home renovation theft scheme.
Andrea Pierce Miller is a Career and Technical Education teacher at Martha Raines Academy, according to online records. A spokesperson tells Houston NBC affiliate KPRC 2 the scheme is unrelated to the school district itself.
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KPRC 2 first reported on the scheme Monday night. The story highlighted the activities of AM2 Construction, a company owned by Andrea Pierce Miller’s husband, Aleck.
According to court records, the Millers came up with repeated excuses for why work wasn’t getting completed before eventually not answering calls, texts, and emails from clients who had hired them.
Both Millers are wanted on a felony theft aggregate charge.
Investigators say Andrea Miller told some clients her husband suffered a heart attack and was dealing with medical issues, but instead, bank and rewards account records subpoenaed by detectives revealed the couple was spending big at casinos in Nevada, Louisiana and Mississippi.
“He had an excuse for everything. Whenever we were texting back and forth, it was either the weather, or something else, or his family,” Ria Krishna said.
She and her husband Rohan hired Aleck Miller to put in a covered patio and extra driveway lane at their home in the Houston suburb of Friendswood in October. He came recommended, had a contract, and seemed professional, they said.
“Everything seemed legit,” Rohan Krishna said. “He was very responsive.”
According to court records, their project would cost a total of $30,000. Miller asked Krishna to pay nearly 40%, or $11,125, upfront. Days later, he asked for $500 via Zelle for supplies.
Then, a few weeks later, Miller asked for another $2,500 for upgraded flooring, according to records. Krishna made a final deposit of $3,750, all before the Krishnas stopped hearing from Aleck Miller.
Krishna’s backyard was left torn up with ‘old, inadequate’ rebar in place for weeks, he said, and the only activity on the work was when a concrete crew came for a couple days but stopped because their check from Miller came back as insufficient.
“$18,000 gone,” Rohan Krishna told KPRC 2. “I had read his reviews online (after the fact), so I was kind of assured that I’m not going to get any work done.”
The Krishnas said as Miller continued asking for payments, he became more aggressive.
“I was just beside myself. I’m like, ‘Does that mean that it’s gone?’” Ria Krishna said.
KPRC 2 spoke to two of three additional alleged victims by phone Monday. All have come forward to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office and claim the Millers took a total of $87,125 from them, according to court records.
According to investigators, large amounts of money from victims landed in Aleck Miller’s bank account before being transferred to Andrea Miller’s account using Zelle.
The Millers allegedly spent $1.53 million at the Golden Nugget Casino in Lake Charles, Louisiana, on gaming tables and slot machines, during the timeframe in which victims claimed they were losing money and not getting any work done.
Investigators found 59 transactions at casinos in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Nevada while Miller was purportedly unable to perform work and around the dates he supposedly had a heart attack, records show. Some of the money spent at the casinos belonged to victims.
“We had no idea. It’s just amazing,” Rohan Krishna said.
The Krishnas hired someone else to complete their renovations, which just got done in the last month or so.
They hope their expensive mistake won’t cost others.
Records show the Millers have not been taken into custody. The arrest warrants were just filed on Thursday and became public over the weekend.
Aleck Miller is also wanted on two other felony theft charges for similar allegations dating back to 2022, records show. Those warrants, for theft aggregate and theft from an elderly person, were filed last June but he hasn’t been taken into custody on either charge.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office is asking for anyone who had business dealings with the Millers to call the Financial Crimes Unit at 713-274-9118.