SALT LAKE CITY — Prosecutors in Weber County have filed fraud and theft charges against a construction contractor who was previously the subject of FOX 13 News investigations.
Ryan K. Goodrich is charged with a count of theft by deception and two counts of communications fraud, all felonies. The Weber County attorney also charged Goodrich, 40, with a misdemeanor count of operating as a contractor without a license.
Goodrich has been issued a summons to appear in court. He has not yet entered a plea. Despite interview requests, he did not speak to FOX 13 about the charges against him.
The charges stem from a home repair job Goodrich accepted in 2023. Jeff Smith, according to court records and receipts reviewed by FOX 13, paid Goodrich about $32,000 to fix exterior stairs and gutters on his late mother’s home in Eden.
Goodrich, Smith said, replaced one set of stairs, but the footings were incorrect. Goodrich tore out another set of stairs without replacing them and did not start the gutter improvements, according to Smith and court documents, nor did Goodrich issue a refund.
When Smith spoke to FOX 13 for a story in January, he said he was angry Utah government hadn’t been able to stop Goodrich.
“I think he needs to be locked up so he can't do this to anyone else,” Smith said. The Utah Department of Insurance in 2023 suspended Goodrich’s license to be a title agent. The emergency order said Goodrich forged signatures to borrow against a home he didn’t own. No criminal charges have been filed in that matter.
Goodrich then went into the construction business. The Utah Division of Professional Licensing, or DOPL, has cited him at least four times for not having a contractor’s license. It also cited him for not obtaining a construction permit from Weber County before starting work on the renovations for Smith.
“We always recommend to start with checking the license,” said Mark Steinagel, the director of DOPL. “But beyond that, there's a lot of free market things that homeowners should do.”
Steinagel recommends anyone wanting to hire a contractor get referrals. Once you have an agreement, enter into a detailed contract.
“If they're pressuring you to pay all upfront or a huge amount up front, that's probably not in your interest,” Steinagel said.
“And we always tell people to monitor work as the project is going along to make sure that it's meeting your needs.”