2 men in custody for impersonating repairmen, sexually assaulting woman in West Chester: police
WEST CHESTER, Pa. (CBS) -- West Chester police have two men in custody for allegedly impersonating contractors in order to gain entry into a woman's home, where they sexually assaulted her, authorities said.
West Chester Borough Police Department's public information officer Dave March posted on Facebook a warning to the public regarding fake contractors who were going door to door soliciting for home repairs.
Police responded to a home in West Chester for a report of a sexual assault back on Wednesday, Nov. 22, where they met with a girl who said three men were allegedly going door to door along High Street pretending to be repairmen.
The girl told police one of the men said his name was "Jimmy" and that he was a contractor. He told her about home repairs for her residence, including roofing and siding.
"Jimmy" gave the girl a business card for a company called "Everest Roofing & Masonry" that had a phone number posted on it. He then came into her house and sexually assaulted her, police said.
West Chester police officers called a number listed on the company business card and scheduled a meeting, where they met two of the three men the girl had said she encountered.
Police immediately took the two men into custody.
Upon further review, police said they discovered "Everest Roofing & Masonry" did not exist and the men were scamming local residents with the fake business.
The men were identified as James McDonagh of Ireland and John Delaney of England. Neither men have a fixed residence in the U.S., according to police.
Some students at West Chester University who live in the area said they were unaware of what happened. They said they generally feel safe where they live, especially seeing police frequently around their homes.
"I would say I feel pretty safe," Erin Hamill said. "There's cops here, I've never had a problem."
