Contact: Nathan Lederman 508-584-8120
PLYMOUTH – A Plymouth man was sentenced to serve time in state prison today after pleading guilty to using his swimming pool company to defraud Massachusetts homeowners out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz has announced.
Steven Docchio, 59, pleaded guilty in Plymouth Superior Court to four counts of Larceny Over $1,200. He was sentenced to two and a half years in state prison, with nine months to be served and the balance suspended for a total of ten years of probation. As part of his sentence, Docchio must pay restitution to his victims and is prohibited from engaging in any construction or landscaping work during his probationary term. The Commonwealth recommended a sentence of four and a half to five years in state prison followed by five years of probation.
During the height of the pandemic, demand for residential swimming pools surged. Docchio exploited this demand by providing homeowners with unrealistic timelines and falsely claiming he had special access to building departments and material vendors. When confronted about the lack of progress, he repeatedly gave false assurances that materials had been ordered and work would resume shortly. After collecting substantial payments, Docchio abandoned projects and left pool installations unfinished. In total, he took more than $500,000 from homeowners for home improvement projects that he failed to complete.
“This so-called contractor made promises to homeowners that he never delivered upon,” DA Cruz said. “Through his schemes and scams Docchio victimized these people and stole from them – first their trust, and then their money. I am hopeful that with this defendant now going to jail and ordered to pay restitution, it will bring some form of closure to his victims.”
This case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Alex Zane.