GRAND FORKS, N.D. (trfnews.i234.me) – A Grand Forks contractor convicted of scamming homeowners out of thousands of dollars was back in court Tuesday morning after the state filed a petition to revoke his probation.
Case Background
📌 Defendant: Matthew Hinze
📌 Initial Conviction: 2018 – Eight Counts of Construction Fraud
📌 Sentence: Three years supervised probation & ordered to pay restitution
📌 Probation Update: Amended to unsupervised probation in May 2024
Probation Violation & Allegations
The case was reopened after allegations that Hinze violated probation terms.
🔹 Between 2017 and 2018, multiple victims hired Hinze for home projects but claimed he collected payments and never completed the work.
🔹 Victims lost between $3,000 and $32,000, with no refunds or communication from Hinze.
🔹 One victim reported paying $32,000 for a project that was never started.
🔹 The same victim later accused Hinze of stealing $15,000 worth of items from their property while they were on vacation.
Ongoing Investigation & Legal Proceedings
🚨 The state is pushing to revoke Hinze’s probation due to these allegations. Further court proceedings will determine whether he will face additional penalties.
🔴 Authorities continue to investigate and urge other potential victims to come forward.
This is a developing case, and updates will be provided as more details emerge.
I’m Chris Harper, reporting for TRFNews