Walton County contractor charged with fraud, money laundering

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Nicholas Henderson
Nicholas Henderson (Image from WCSO)

The owner of a Walton County construction company has been charged with fraud and money laundering and is now facing felony charges.

The Walton County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) says in an April 22 statement that it received a call in December 2021 from a victim who was in the process of having a home built in Inlet Beach. The victim had been contacted by a local business who advised him he was being defrauded by his property developer.

The initial investigation found the victim hired Nicholas Henderson, 43, owner of Henderson Construction based out of Rosemary Beach in Walton County.

During the home-building process, investigators allege that the contractor fraudulently altered invoices multiple times in 2021 and 2022, where he artificially inflated prices for products and services, the statement said. “In some cases, charging the victim for services and products not provided.”

“In the process, Henderson combined his illicit financial gains with legitimate business assets and by doing so illegally laundered money.”

Henderson is accused of stealing and laundering in excess of $75,000 from the victim.

He is charged with organized fraud greater than $50,000, money laundering greater than $20,000 less than $100,000, two counts of forgery, and two counts of submitting a false invoice.

Henderson was arrested and released on March 9 with a $30,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in court on June 23.

WCSO says it encouraging anyone who believes they may be a victim of Henderson Construction to contact the Criminal Investigations Bureau.

“As we continue to see an uptick in financial crimes, the Walton County Sheriff’s Office is encouraging residents to perform due diligence on those they hire, prioritize auditing all transactions and pay close attention to any electronic monetary transfers,” the statement says. “In addition, it’s also a good practice to obtain itemized invoices and verify they are not duplicated.”

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