James S. Koury DBA JSK Contracting Took cash to replace windows, installed cheaper windows than I paid, didn't finish job Sayreville New Jersey

In January 2005, I found JSK Contracting's ad in the Middlesex County, NJ yellow pages. James S. Koury came to my house to give us an estimate for replacing windows and installing a sliding door in my home. We were pleased with the estimate and gave Mr. Koury a cash deposit.

Our sliding door was delivered and 3 windows. Our 4th window, a large picture window was supposed to be on backorder and would arrive within a few days. Mr. Koury installed the 3 windows but did not complete the trim, but assured us he would be back to complete the job. By this point, we had given him $2900 in cash as deposits.

We heard from Mr. Koury the following week when he informed us that he was in an accident and was hurt. He needed to do weeks or therapy and was unable to work. He assured us that he would be back to finish our window and install the door as soon as he was feeling up to it. After a month, we called Mr. Koury to see if he was ready feeling better. He claimed he was not. He told us he would send another contractor to finish the job. Needless to say, no one showed up.

When we contacted Mr. Koury again, he told us that his uncle had died and he needed some bereavement time. We allowed him 3 more days. We never heard from him again. We leave messages from time to time, but he does not call back. We sent a police officer to his address in Sayreville, but they claim he does not live there.

We had a family member call JSK Contracting to inquire about windows. A man that called himself Steve returned the call and said that windows could be installed as early as that week. When it came time to set up an appointment, "Steve" did not call my family member back. It is obvious that Mr. Koury is either working or having someone else work for him.

We did some of our own investigating and found out that Mr. Koury not only took $2900 from us, but he did not install the windows he gave us an invoice for. The window manufacturer stated that the windows that were sold to Mr. Koury were much less expensive than the ones Mr. Koury claims to have installed. This is theft by deception, which is an indictable crime. We plan to file a police report. Mr. Koury used a false address on his business stationary, so we are having trouble tracking him down. We are a young couple with 2 small children. We saved for over a year to replace the windows on our modest home. We now have a half-finished job and are still missing a window. We cannot afford to hire someone else to do the job so my children will just have to live with plastic over their windows until we can save more money. It is going to be difficult because of the enormous winter heating bills we had to pay. PLEASE...do not allow James S. Koury to rip anyone else off! Stay away!

Donna
Old Bridge, New Jersey
U.S.A.