Forest City contractor pleads guilty to defrauding clients

FOREST CITY — A Forest City contractor accused of defrauding clients has entered into a plea agreement as his trial was scheduled to get underway this week.

45-year-old Joshua Follman was charged with ongoing criminal conduct, a Class B felony, as well as three counts of first-degree theft and one count of second-degree theft.

Forest City police filed charges in November of last year dealing with three separate home improvement projects Follman was hired to do. In May 2022, he allegedly agreed to replace windows in a home, received an upfront payment of $22,000 but never did the work.

Also in May 2022, he agreed to replace siding on a different home, received an upfront payment, and then started but never completed the work.

In the third case, a homeowner paid upfront to put a steel roof on their house, with Follman putting on used materials, installing it poorly, and that the homeowner was overcharged.

Follman as part of a plea agreement pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree theft, each a Class C felony punishable by up to ten years in prison. He’s scheduled to be sentenced on December 17th in Winnebago County District Court.