“Every hot summer I wish we had a pool,” said Nicole Ingram of Griswold.
For many Connecticut families, this week’s heatwave is a fresh reminder of the pool the owners of Roy’s Pools in Canterbury never provided.
“The worst part is he stole from my family. He stole from my family. I was not going to let him go even though the charges were dismissed,” said Bob Ingram, also a Griswold resident.
Bob Ingram, his wife and their two daughters were in Danielson’s courtroom Friday as Brian Roy and his wife, Christina Hatch Roy, stood before the judge.
Twenty families claim they paid a combined total of more than $179,000 to Royce Pools, and the couple are facing several counts of theft.
Ingram said he paid the company $27,000 to install a pool, patio and fence, but the work was never completed.
“I don’t care about the money,” he said. “What’s important is that he’s held accountable.”
Two other former clients were also present and pleaded with the judge not to grant Roy accelerated rehabilitation, which could have allowed the Stirling man to avoid a conviction and ultimately have no criminal record.
“It’s essentially an insult, a slap in the face to know this has happened to us and he may get away with it. Again, we’ve been dealing with this for years and we just want to see some justice served,” said Megan Millett, of Canterbury.
In addition to thousands of dollars in losses and many pools that were never installed, the court process has been emotionally exhausting, the families said.
“It’s a huge emotional toll and we don’t want to lose faith in people or the court system, so we’re just hoping for the best and that he has to pay for all that he’s done to so many people,” said Darlene Patton, of Norwich.
The Roys left court today without saying a word.
The trial continued until July 26th.
