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SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah man who claimed he could build thermal mass homes at a fraction of the cost and time of traditional homes does not actually have a general contractor's license, according to prosecutors.
Daniel Fuller Faust, 71, of Duchesne, was charged Wednesday in 3rd District Court with two counts of securities fraud, a second-degree felony.
Faust "has never held a securities license or a general contractor's license" and his company, Faust Homes, "is not and has never been a registered business entity with the Utah Division of Corporations," according to charging documents.
Faust Homes purported to build thermal mass homes, or homes "designed and constructed in a manner in which the mass of the building enables it to store and release heat while maintaining better insulation against temperature fluctuations," the charges state. The company allegedly claimed it could built the homes "for a fraction of the cost and in a fraction of the time it would take to build a more traditionally constructed home" and then be sold for profit.
Between 2019 and 2020, Daniel Faust sold investment opportunities to at least two Utah residents and collected nearly $125,000, the charges say.
"An investigation revealed that Faust utilized investor funds in a manner that was inconsistent with the representations made, including, but not limited to commingling investor funds in his personal accounts and using it for personal expenses, and/or Faust engaged in an act, practice, or course of business which operated as a fraud. To date, investors in Faust Homes are owed approximately $124,523.53 in principal alone," prosecutors state in charging documents.
Faust used that money for "personal shopping, expenses related to Faust's personal auto, cash withdrawals, food and dining, and to pay off prior negative bank balances," according to the charges.
Investigators say he also falsely claimed to investors that he was experienced in building thermal mass homes, he had a "Ph.D in physics from the University of Utah," and that he could construct the home in a year.
