Homebuilder Who Stole Millions From Clients and Faked Disappearance Sentenced

He admitted to taking millions of dollars from customers to pay for trips to the Super Bowl and the World Series. He then reportedly faked his own disappearance to avoid taking responsibility, and he will spend the next few years in prison.

Brett Michael Detamore, who is 40 years old, admitted to wire theft last year and was given a 51-month prison sentence on Wednesday. This is equal to four years and three months. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas says he also needs to repay more than 10 people with $2.3 million.

Prosecutors said Detamore, who owned Detamore Development LLC, got at least $1.5 million that was supposed to go to housing projects but was used for his own pleasure. He lied on his bills to get building loans from banks for single-family homes he was hired to build. Prosecutors say he then used the money for his own gain.

The indictment says that Detamore signed a deal with a client in October 2022 to build a single-family home in Houston on Nottingham Street. But Detamore never built the house; he kept the money instead.

Several of the victims talked about how Detamore ruined their income. A story from local NBC affiliate KPRC says victim Lori Williamson told the judge that she wasn’t sure if Detamore could build her dream home because they were friends.

Williamson allegedly said that Detamore told her, “Who better to trust than your good friends?” in response to her worry.

KPRC also talked to another victim after the hearing. This victim worked for Detamore and was friends with him.

“I mean, we had to figure out how to get our money back after what he did,” Sergio Moreno told the TV station. “Even though we got a little back, it’s not enough to make up for what we lost.”

When Detamore’s wife reported him missing in June 2023, the police began looking for him. According to the West University Place Police, his burned-out yellow Dodge Ram TRX was discovered just hours later at Bear Creek Pioneers Park, shortly after he had left his home. The suspicious circumstances surrounding his disappearance quickly drew attention from investigators.

Police said Detamore had been “reunited with his family” after he was found at a bus stop in San Antonio six days after he was last seen.

Later, the police talked about the strange events and the people who still had questions about what happened. Police said they looked through financial and phone records and talked to a witness who said he saw a guy walking away from Detamore’s burned-out pickup truck in order to find “valuable clues” and solve the “puzzle” of her sudden disappearance.

What the police found was that it “appeared that Brett’s disappearance was pre-planned.”

At the time, police said, “We understand that people want more information, but we need to be careful because there may be potential suspects, the person who left, or possible co-conspirators who are watching our updates.” “Our top priority is to keep the investigation’s integrity and make sure that no possible leads or evidence are lost or damaged.”

Zaffer Syed filed a $1 million case in Harris County on October 4, 2023, to try to fill in some of the blanks.

Syed is suing Detamore and Detamore Development, LLC for breach of contract, fraud, unjust enrichment, theft, and negligent misrepresentation. He says that the defendant used investment money that was supposed to pay for building homes to pay for his own “lavish lifestyle,” which included buying tickets to “major sporting events” like the Super Bowl and World Series.

The lawsuit said that Brett Detamore lived a fancy life that included going to the Super Bowl, World Series games, meet-and-greets with players, and other expensive events. Brett Detamore took private jets and stayed in high-end hotels and spas. He also owned a second home in Galveston that was worth more than a million dollars and drove a pricey Dodge Ram TRX truck and Cadillac Escalade.

People who were suing Detamore said that he showed off “his ability to defraud innocent victims” by putting the vanity plate “HIDEIT” on his Cadillac Escalade.

Syed said that Detamore’s “disappearance” and the planned truck fire were his last-ditch efforts to get out of his “responsibility for building the Homes.”

The suit said, “In reality, Defendant misappropriated and stole a lot of the money that was supposed to be used to finish building the Homes.” “The defendants carried out the scheme by making false invoices and pictures and sending them to the lending bank to support interim draws.”

The case is still going on, and the trial is set for October, which is about two years after it was first filed. He is also being sued in other cases that are still going on.