Who:
Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office
Patrol Operations Bureau
- Construction License Investigation Unit
- Community Policing Unit

City of Dunedin

Florida Department of Financial Services

State Attorney Sixth Judicial Court

What:                  
Deputies assigned to the Construction License Investigation Unit, along with various other Sheriff’s Office components, and other state and county agencies worked collaboratively in an undercover sting to charge and arrest unlicensed contractors working in Pinellas County during “Operation Drop the Hammer”.

When:
The operation began on Saturday February 17, 2018 and ended on Monday February 19,2018 .

Where:       
The undercover sting operation was conducted at 962 Grovewood Drive, Dunedin

Why/How:
Deputies assigned to the Construction License Investigation Unit along with the Florida Department of Financial Services, and the State Attorney Sixth Judicial Court worked collaboratively to charge and arrest unlicensed contractors working in Pinellas County during an operation coined “Operation Drop the Hammer”.

The undercover sting operation was conducted at 962 Grovewood Drive, Dunedin and began on Saturday February 17, 2018, and ended Monday, February 19, 2018. Through this undercover sting deputies were solicited by unlicensed specialty contracting suspects who offered to perform illegal unlicensed contracting work to undercover deputies.

Investigators identified 26 suspects with a total of 57 criminal charges. These charges include unlicensed specialty contracting violations, workers compensation fraud, knowingly allowing unlicensed person to use license number.

As of 11:00 a.m. Monday, February 19, 2017, and as a result of the undercover sting operation deputies have arrested a total of 26 suspects.

Sheriff Bob Gualtieri held a press conference at the Dunedin North District Garage located at 1070 Virginia Street, Dunedin, to discuss the purpose of “Operation Drop the Hammer”. Sheriff Gualtieri said “This problem of unlicensed contractors engaging in work inappropriately, quite frankly ripping people off is a huge problem it shows the ineffectiveness of enforcement over the last several years because this operation was too easy. It was like shooting fish in a barrel, in the last couple days, we did not begin this until Saturday morning, and we arrested 26 people on 57 charges.”

Sheriff Gualtieri established the Construction License Investigation Unit on August 7, 2017. Since then, the Sheriff’s Office has conducted over 700 unlicensed contracting or related investigations. 

Video of the Sheriff’s press conference can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/pDtxUUIIE-c