‘Contractor’ advertised on Craigslist without a license, so now he’s facing charges

A man is facing charges for falsely representing himself as licensed contractor when he advertised his services as a handyman and electrical contractor on Craigslist, after detectives set up an undercover sting to catch him in the act, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office.

Artemio Aneuber, 50, was arrested by detectives with the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office on Friday and charged him with two counts of operating as a contractor without a license, forgery and possession of marijuana. He was released later that day on bonds totaling $3,000.

The undercover investigation into Aneuber began when detectives learned he was advertising on Craigslist as a handyman and electrical contractor under a fictitious business name, Blue Monkey Electric, according to a news release. They discovered he already had warrants charging him with forgery and falsely presenting himself as a contractor.

An undercover detective posed as a homeowner and asked Aneuber to meet them at Beachcomber Court and Blackburn Point Road to install electrical receptacle outlets for flat screen televisions, according to his arrest report.

The sheriff’s office has assigned detectives to investigate claims against unlicensed contractors since 2012, according to the release.

This story was originally published June 6, 2017 at 2:33 PM with the headline "‘Contractor’ advertised on Craigslist without a license, so now he’s facing charges."