Police: Man wanted for stealing $9K in tree cutting scam

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. - Police are searching for a Flowery Branch man wanted for stealing thousands of dollars in connection with a tree cutting scam in Gwinnett County.

Authorities said they started investigating Andrew Mosley, 22, in December of last year after learning he was operating a fake business where he would pose as a tree cutting and removal service, using different company names. According to police, some of those false names include B&M Tree Services, Mosley Tree Service and United Tree Service.

WATCH: The search is on for man who stole thousands of dollars

Police said after receiving a half or full payment, Mosley would not complete the work or he would only complete half of the tree cutting and removal job. He's accused of stealing money from 14 different people, which include several elderly victims in their mid-70's and early 80's.

Laura Marshall and her family live in Dacula. Marshall says she hired Mosely to cut down some trees in her front yard.

"When he cut the trees he only cut them off this high, and then he left the trees and the logs in the yard. We paid him half and he never came back the next day or the next day or the next day, despite the repeated phone calls," said Marshall.

She said she had to pay another company $1,200 to clean up the mess.

Rick Steward lives in the same neighborhood he still has piles of wood and debris in his yard that was supposed to be hauled off weeks ago. Steward said he agreed to pay Mosely to chop down some trees, but stayed on top of their work, and only paid them for what had been completed. Steward says they never finished the job.

"They still had four or five-hundred dollars’ worth of work and they never came back for it," said Steward.

Gwinnett County police detectives believe Mosley was paid about $9,000 in the tree cutting scam. He is wanted for 13 counts of misdemeanor theft by conversion and one count of felony theft by conversion.

Anyone with information on Mosley's whereabouts is asked to contact the Gwinnett County Police Department at 770-513-5300. Crime Stoppers Atlanta is offering a $2,000 reward for any information that could lead to an arrest.

According to detectives, one of the best ways to avoid being scammed by a fake company is by checking the Secretary of State's website to verify the company exists.

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