The 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office dismissed trespass charges last week against a Florissant couple ripped off by a local contractor and police aren’t eager to talk about it.
Instead of arresting the man who stole their money, Colorado Springs police arrested Randy and Shelley Love after they tried to get their money back.
The couple paid Todd Braudis, owner of TK Services, nearly $20,000 for home repairs he never completed.
After Braudis stopped showing up and failed to return phone calls, the Love’s went to his business address which just so happened to be his home. They wanted to see whether Braudis would offer a refund instead of taking the case to court.
The Love’s knocked on the door, but nobody answered.
Shortly after, Braudis’ friend, an off-duty Colorado Springs police officer showed up. According Colorado Springs police spokesperson Lt. Howard Black, the off-duty officer was on his way to Braudis’ home for a birthday party.
According to a police report, the off-duty officer asked the couple to leave. They left, and four days later, Colorado Springs police called them back to the police station to charge them with trespassing.
The Love’s filed a complaint with CSPD about the off-duty officer, claiming he was “rude” and flashed a badge at them but refused to give them his name.
An internal investigation into the officer’s actions was launched, and no disciplinary action was taken.
Meanwhile, Randy and Shelley Love appeared in court numerous times for the trespass charges.
On June 27, the district attorney’s office filed a motion to dismiss the case “in the interest of justice”.
A spokesperson for the 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office says the matter was “civil” and should have been resolved through “mediation”.
After the case was dismissed, News 5 Investigates reached out to the Colorado Springs Police Department to discuss this matter.
“There is no additional information to add,” CSPD Spokesperson Lt. Howard Black said in an email.
Our request for an on-camera interview was also denied.
Police have offered no apology to the Love’s, nor have they arrested Braudis for theft despite a civil court judge ruling Braudis owes them $7,000.
The Colorado Springs Police Department stands by the arrests and claim the charges had nothing to do with the friendship between one of its officers and contractor Todd Braudis.
Lt. Black said the criminal trespass charges were brought at the request of Mr. Braudis, but now new questions are being raised over whether this is true.
According to the district attorney’s office, Mr. Braudis called to cancel a hearing on March 27. When the office tried to reschedule, Braudis stopped answering his phone. If Braudis really wanted the Love’s charged, why didn’t he communicate with the DA’s Office?
Braudis was not present in court when charges against the Love’s were dropped.
Transparency report:
News 5 Investigates asked Colorado Springs police for access to the internal affairs investigation into the off-duty officer’s actions. The majority of the police report that ultimately led to the charges against Randy and Shelley Love relied heavily on statements made by the off-duty officer. We also asked CSPD for a copy of any statements made by the off-duty officer to his superiors related to this case.
“After balancing the factors supporting and opposing disclosure as well as applicable case law, the custodian has determined that release of the records would be contrary to the public interest.”
Continuing coverage:
After our initial story aired, News 5 Investigates was contacted by another another viewer who claims Todd Braudis was paid money for repair work he didn’t complete.
The viewer advised us that Colorado Springs police declined to take a police report.
If you paid Mr. Braudis money for work he did not perform, file a formal complaint with the Colorado Attorney General’s Office.
