HEMPSTEAD, Texas — Benjamin Wood, a contractor on parole for stealing from Hurricane Harvey victims, is under investigation for multiple new thefts in Waller County.
Wood was arrested on March 20 on a theft charge but has since posted bond. After the arrest became public on Facebook, five additional potential victims came forward.
Jerre Green says she hired Wood last May to clean her pool, unaware of his criminal history. She said he initially visited weekly but later became sporadic, claiming back surgery as an excuse.
The Waller County Sheriff’s Office began investigating Wood on March 6 after another woman reported paying him more than $1,100 to build a water slide that was never constructed.
Wood has a long criminal history, with 17 prior arrests for theft, credit card fraud, and forgery. In 2020, he was convicted of theft in Montgomery and Harris counties. Prosecutors said he swindled $180,000 from 26 people in Harris County and wrote bad checks totaling tens of thousands in Montgomery County. He was sentenced to 10 years but paroled after less than two years.
Green says she plans to file her own theft report with the Waller County Sheriff’s Office.
