Heather Bellow is reporting for The Berkshire Eagle a Pittsfield man has been indicted for allegedly bilking customers in the Berkshires and across five states in a construction scam. Fred Lewis Senter Jr., 40, allegedly stole more than $400,000 through false pretenses, according to a statement from Berkshire District Attorney Andrea Harrington’s Office. The scam allegedly took place between February 2020 and September 2021, through his company, Northern Steel Buildings and Structures LLC. “Mr. Senter is accused of contracting and accepting payments from more than 40 victims across five different states to build steel structures with no intent of completing the work,” the DA said in a Facebook post. She noted that Senter was first arrested and investigated by Pittsfield Police before state police detectives attached to the DA’s office began their probe. Among the victims was the Richmond, Mass. Volunteer Fire Department, which paid Senter a deposit of almost $53,000 to build a steel structure, according to the statement. Harrington asks that any other potential victims contact local police or state police detectives in her office. Senter’s alleged victims stretch across Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania and include multiple residents, businesses and a church. In 2019, Senter was arraigned in Pittsfield for being a fugitive from justice without a warrant after he was charged with grand larceny in Columbia County. That charge was dismissed. Senter’s company was dissolved by court order in June 2021. Read the full story in The Berkshire Eagle.