Los Angeles County prosecutors have charged five men with felonies for allegedly working as unlicensed contractors in the Eaton fire burn scar and vowed to find and prosecute other workers trying to rebuild homes destroyed by the January wildfires without a license, officials announced Thursday, Dec. 11.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office accused the men of knowingly doing contract work without licenses during a natural disaster, a felony in California.

Property owners are drawn to unlicensed contractors after receiving insurance money because they often promise to rebuild their homes faster and cheaper than others, District Attorney Nathan Hochman said. Unlicensed contractors bring a greater risk of fraud, he said.

Homeowners can be sued for any injury workers experience

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