Main Street Man Gives $800 to Flagger He Mistook for Contractor

A Main Street resident is trying to reach an agreement with a road construction flagger after giving the flagger $800 upfront for future driveway work, police said.

The 69-year-old man approached the flagger, who was monitoring traffic for road work on main Street, with the assumption the flagger was a construction worker and inquired about repair work on his driveway, said Sgt. Carol Ogrinc.

The flagger said he could do the work for $1,600, but that he would need half upfront for material and tools, police said.

The homeowner then wrote the flagger a check for $800, but, a few hours later, the homeowner learned that the flagger would not be using the construction equipment on site and asked for the check back, said Ogrinc.

The flagger then told the homeowner that he’d already cashed the check and purchased the equipment and could not give the money back, said Ogrinc.  

The two men are trying to come up with an agreement and settle the issue in a civil case, said Ogrinc.

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A Redding man having his fingerprints inked for an employer in New Canaan was found to have a warrant for his arrest the morning of July 26, police said.

Kent T. Brooks, 21, was served a warrant and arrested after New Canaan police did a routine scan of his fingerprints for an employer and he was found to have failed to respond to an infraction issued by Redding police, said Sgt. Carol Ogric.

Brooks posted his $75 bond and is scheduled to appear in court in Danbury on August 8, said Ogrinc.