TEXAS HILL COUNTRY
A Hill Country area builder was found guilty May 22 in Llano for allegedly billing several property owners out of hundreds of thousands of dollars over a period of time.
Following the verdict at the Llano County Courthouse, Wayne Alan Erickson was sentenced to a year in a state jail facility with a 10-year deferred prison sentence.
The guilty verdict at the two-week trial involved a 12-person jury and later that day the sentencing agreement among attorneys.
Erickson of Erickson Custom Homes is a builder most recently based in Hays County.
“We wanted him to have some sort of accountability through a felony conviction that carries all the liabilities and restrictions that go along with that,” said Wiley “Sonny” McAfee, the special prosecutor in the trial. “They [victims] also didn’t want him doing it to anyone else.”
McAfee said one of the conditions of his probation is that he cannot be a contractor in any capacity and that he will receive jail time.
“One year was satisfacto- ry to him as a lesson to let him [know] what he’d be in for if he messes up on his probation.
“My thought was to add restitution, and see if we could get some restitution for these families.”
The total amount of restitution will range from $300,000 to $500,000, pending the outcome of a hearing.
The defendants indictments stemmed from incidents which occurred from 2013 to 2021 with two sets of victims from Llano County and four from Travis County. Retired Judge Daryl Coffey of Tarrant County presided over the trial.
McAfee, appointed by 33rd/424th Judicial District Attorney Perry Thomas, tried the case with the assistance of Llano County Attorney Matt Rienstra. McAfee served as the local DA prior to Thomas.
“We appreciate the jury holding Mr. Erickson accountable for his actions,” Thomas said. “It just goes to show we have a commitment to victims of fraud.”
Thomas added that the crimes involved large amounts of money being defrauded from people trying to build homes.
“Because of the large amount of money and people involved, it’s a huge verdict.,” Thomas said.
The punishment phase involved impact statements from the victims.
“It’s so important because of the problem we have with contractors. He stole tremendous amounts of money,” McAfee said. “There was the side effect of the emotional stress, taking away the resources they needed for family, children’s schooling.
“This guy didn’t just steal money. He stole their dreams.”
After the guilty verdict, the defense moved to “sever” a number of other counts involving first degree felony misapplication of fiduciary/financial property and three of four state jail felony charges of securing the execution of documents through deception.
The prosecution focused on “count 1”, which was a first degree felony charge of theft of property (greater than $300,000).
The punishment agreement also took into account a state jail felony charge of securing the execution of a document through deception, which involved a $10,000 check.
“Normally, I would ask for as much prison time as possible on this because he was a thief. Some of these families have been at it for 12 years,” McAfee said. “He hurt so many people financially, emotionally.”
Erickson, who is now a convicted felon, waived his right to an appeal and will serve his probation while paying back the money over the 10-year period. He was given two weeks to get his “affairs in order” before being transported to the state jail facility.
Wayne Alan Erickson
