Contractor accused of stealing money after not completing work in Cape Coral

A contractor has been arrested after allegedly taking money from customers for dock work that was never completed in Cape Coral.

According to the Cape Coral Police Department, multiple victims reported that 30-year-old Dylan Wray Moon took money as the owner/operator of Oceanside Marine Contracting for dock work that was never completed.

On Jan. 25, 2023, a man reported that he hired Oceanside Marine Contracting to replace his boat dock at a home near the area of the Cape Coral Yacht Club.

The victim made two payments around Oct. 13, 2022, totaling more than $68,000 to cover a 50% deposit.

Docks Never Completed

Oceanside Marine Contracting, owned by Moon, removed the existing dock and ordered a new one, which was unusable because it did not fit.

The man said Oceanside Marine Contracting never completed the job and did not return the deposit provided. 

On April 16, 2023, another man reported that he hired Oceanside Marine Contracting to complete a dock on his property near the area of Mohawk Parkway and Skyline Boulevard.

That man reported a $1,000 check was given to Moon to cover the cost of a permit. The victim reported the permit was issued not through Oceanside Marine Contracting but through a different contracting company.

On Sept. 16, 2023, he made a second payment of more than $30,000 to complete the dock project. He said he waited several weeks after Hurricane Ian to contact Moon about the status of his dock project, and the contractor said he lost everything to build the dock in the storm.

The victim continued to wait for the work to be done, which never happened, and Moon wouldn’t answer his calls or texts. The victim said Moon never delivered materials, started or finished a job he was hired to do, and never returned his money.

Accusations of fraud

On May 2, officers met with a woman at another home near Mohawk Parkway and Skyline Boulevard about a fraud complaint.

She told officers on June 21, 2022, she entered into a contract with Oceanside Marine Contracting to build a dock and gave Moon a check for almost $5,000 as a down payment.

Moon told her on Sept. 6, 2022, the work would begin in a couple of days, and she gave him another check for almost $30,000.

After several weeks, no work had begun and no materials were dropped off.

The contractor told the woman due to Hurricane Ian, he was busy doing other jobs, and hers would have to wait.

In January of 2023, she contacted Moon because she hadn’t heard from him, and nothing had been done.

Moon then reportedly told her he would not complete the job, she would not get any money back and he was filing for bankruptcy. 

The investigation revealed Moon did not file for bankruptcy.

Moon was arrested on Friday and transported to the Lee County Jail.

He’s being charged with grand theft of $20,000 or more but less than $100,000; grand theft of $10,000 or more but less than $50,000 from victim 65 or older, scheme to defraud more than $20,000 and scheme to defraud more than $50,000.