Builder charged with more counts Additional charges added to those in June
GUILDERLAND – A Guilderland builder faces additional counts of fraud after he was arrested in June after additional victims came forward in Bethlehem and Guilderland.
Aaron R. Godlewski, 31, of Altamont, was charged on August 7 with three counts of scheme to defraud, all felonies, and three counts of illegal diversion of labor/equipment, all misdemeanors.
On June 13, 2023, State Police first arrested Godlewski for grand larceny, three counts of scheme to defraud in the first degree- issuing a bad check and scheme to defraud in the second degree, all felonies, and two counts of theft of services and petit larceny, all misdemeanors.
On May 1, Troopers received a complaint from a contractor reporting they were issued a bad check by an Albany County Builder.
The investigation determined Godlewski was acting as a home builder and general contractor under the company name of Godlewski Builders LLC. In the course of the investigation, additional victims were discovered.
Godlewski allegedly was hired by multiple individuals and paid for contracted work. He allegedly hired numerous subcontractors who completed parts of the project but then failed to reimburse them and, in one incident, issued a payment from an account known to have insufficient funds. These crimes occurred in New Scotland, Altamont, and Bethlehem from 2021 through 2023 and resulted in the theft of services and more than $1,000.
Godlewski surrendered himself to State Police in New Scotland, where he was arrested and processed. He was issued appearance tickets returnable to the multiple courts on later dates.
DWI on Murray Avenue
DELMAR – On Saturday, August 19 at approximately 2:44 a.m. Bethlehem Police stopped a 2011 gray Dodge Charger near the intersection of Murray Avenue and Route 32 for traffic violations.
Upon interviewing the driver, a 23-year-old man from Albany, officers observed a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from his breath, had impaired motor coordination and had bloodshot and watery eyes.
He was given and failed field sobriety tests and tested positive for breath alcohol on a pre-screening device. An investigation determined that the vehicle also had a suspended registration.
The man was taken into custody and, at the police station, he provided a breath sample that returned a .13 percent BAC.
He was charged with DWI and operating a vehicle with a suspended registration, both misdemeanors, and ticketed for driving left of pavement markings, moving from a lane unsafely and failing to signal.
The man was issued tickets, given a bill of particulars, issued an appearance ticket and released. He is scheduled in Bethlehem Town Court on September 5.
Warrant and Larceny at Lowes
GLENMONT – Bethlehem police traveled to the Schenectady County jail on Monday, August 21 to pick up a 37-year-old Schenectady man on an outstanding warrant for allegedly stealing from Lowes in July.
According to reports, on July 19, Keith Kulsha allegedly selected a Husqvarna chainsaw and proceeded to the self checkout, then told the employee he selected the wrong model and chose a more expensive model, but did not pay for it and left the store.
He was eventually identified and an arrest warrant was issued.
Kulsha was arraigned by Bethlehem Judge Ryan Donovan and released under the supervision of probation. He was then picked up by East Greenbush police for an outstanding warrant from that town.
