Man, already charged for construction swindles, faces threats charge

WILLMAR - Shawn Ray Bachman, 42, of Montevideo, made his first court appearance Wednesday on a felony charge of terroristic threats for allegedly threatening the lives of a man and his family in September.
According to the charges, the man had filed a civil lawsuit against Bachman for wages never paid to the man for work at Bachman’s contracting company.
Unconditional bail was set at $5,000. Bachman, who also faces a misdemeanor charge for failing to pay minimum wages, is scheduled to appear again on Monday in Kandiyohi County District Court.
Bachman will also appear in court on Monday on two felony charges of theft by swindle and theft of services for allegedly taking money from customers and never completing the projects as agreed in construction contracts.
In that case, filed last summer, Bachman also faces four misdemeanor counts of theft by swindle and theft of services.
According to the new complaint, a man reported to Willmar police on Sept. 29 that Bachman had approached him at the Willmar Wal-Mart store and threatened him and his family.
The man had filed a civil lawsuit claiming that Bachman failed to pay him for 77 hours of work in August 2012.
According to the earlier complaint for the theft by swindle, the investigation by the Kandiyohi County Sheriff’s Office began after a man reported that he had hired BMK Contracting, of Montevideo and owned by Bachman, to do painting at a Lake Lillian residence. The man had paid Bachman $2,500 in deposit and signed a contract.
The man had attempted to make contact with Bachman after the painting was not being completed. He reported that Bachman had asked for more money for supplies and then never showed up at a meeting with the man.
The investigation revealed multiple reports to the Montevideo Police Department and the Swift County Sheriff’s Office about Bachman, including that he failed to return rented equipment, failed to pay for gas and made threats to another individual in a disagreement about money Bachman owed to the person.
Information from the state Department of Labor showed that numerous businesses were registered by Bachman, including KSB Landscaping, KSB Painting, KSB Painting & Landscaping, KSB Roofing, KSB Contracting and BMK Contracting.
The department had also issued cease-and-desist orders for unlicensed activity by the companies and orders to pay $2,890 and $2,500 in civil fines.
The investigation showed that the Better Business Bureau gave Bachman an F grade on a scale of A+ to F and that he has been sued six times between November 2010 and September 2012 for failure to complete payment for either product items or services.
Bachman was interviewed about the Lake Lillian incident in April 2013, telling the detective a variety of information, including that the man intended to do the work himself, that Bachman would give the money back, that Bachman intended to do the work and that he had sent a letter to the man indicating Bachman would not pursue breach of contract with the man.
The detective talked with the man, who said he never received any letter from Bachman and had no conversation with him about returning the money.
As the investigation continued in May and June, two more citizens in Kandiyohi County reported to law enforcement that Bachman had taken their money for landscaping and painting services which were not received. One of the citizens reported that Bachman had yelled and screamed at him, using abusive and derogatory language, and had threatened to burn down their house.