FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. - A Virginia contractor has been sentenced to 12 years in prison on six counts of fraud tied to repeated failures to complete construction jobs, officials say.
Richard Tadlock, 76, was convicted in June by a Fairfax County jury of five counts of failing to perform construction work of more than $1,000 and one count of obtaining money by false pretenses. He was sentenced September 10 to five years with three years suspended on each count and ordered to pay $2.3 million in restitution.
The Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office said Tadlock had worked in Virginia‑area construction since 1990 and most recently owned T&S Homebuilders, where he built custom homes for clients. Officials say the six victims were Fairfax homeowners who hired Tadlock between 2021 and 2023 for demolition and custom home construction totaling $1.2 million.
Prosecutors showed at trial that Tadlock failed to perform any construction on four houses and left two others partially built, despite being paid for additional work that was never completed. All six victims filed demand letters in July 2023, which Tadlock ignored, prompting them to contact police.
Victims testified about the significant financial and emotional toll, saying they lost life savings and endured years of stress that strained marriages and diverted new parents’ attention from their children.
"Some people might not think that white collar crime is important, but fraud cases like this can steal a family’s life savings and ruin their future," Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano said in a statement. "Financial crimes can be devastating to victims and deserve to be prosecuted with the same level of seriousness and professionalism that our office brings to any criminal case."
The Source: Information in this article comes from the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.