The operator of a Twin Cities company has admitted in court that he cheated clients out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in down payments by falsely pledging to install in-ground swimming pools, then spending some of the windfall on gambling, child support and a horse and saddle.
Charles R. Workman, 40, who owned MN Crete Pools, a Prior Lake company that marketed pools throughout the Twin Cities area, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis to wire fraud in connection with the scheme that enriched him by more than $820,000 in 2021 and 2022.
Workman remains jailed without bail ahead of sentencing, which has yet to be scheduled.
The plea agreement between the defense and prosecutors notes that federal guidelines call for sentence ranging from 2¾ to just shy of 4½ years in prison. That said, federal judges have full discretion when sentencing defendants and are not bound by the guidelines calculation.
Workman lived on a 9-acre spread in Prior Lake. The 4,200-square-foot home included an in-ground heated pool in the back yard and a horse stable, the real estate listing noted.
The property sold in late 2022 for $876,000, according to county property records. Workman’s estranged wife, Jennifer Workman, told the Minnesota Star Tribune that they defaulted on the loan, were evicted and made no money from the sale.
According to the charges:
Workman collected down payments and promised to install a pool that same year, but then failed to complete the project. At times, he told multiple clients he only had one more spot on his construction schedule as inducement for them to make a down payment.
