Attorney General Kelly Ayotte announced today that Tracy Dale Atwater was sentenced in Belknap County Superior Court to 4-10 years at the New Hampshire State Prison and 7 ˝-15 years, suspended on five (5) Class A felony charges of Theft by Unauthorized Taking or Transfer. Conditions of his sentence include that he pay restitution to the victims and that he is prohibited from owning, operating, managing or controlling a home contracting business, or any other kind of business where he would take deposits prior to delivering goods or services, in the State of New Hampshire for a period of 20 years.

The charges brought against the defendant by the Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau of the Office of the Attorney General arose out of Tracy Dale Atwater’s operation of a home contracting business. The 5 indictments charged that Atwater and N.E. Atwatermorin, LLC obtained substantial deposits from consumers for home contracting services which he then failed to provide or provided only minimally. Despite Atwater’s promises to consumers, he failed to complete the contracted for work or to fully refund their money. On July 19, 2006, after a two day trial, a Belknap County Superior Court jury found the defendant guilty on all charges.

Attorney General Ayotte said “The sentence imposed on Tracy Dale Atwater today by the Belknap County Superior Court should send a message to other unscrupulous individuals and businesses which use their business dealings with consumers to steal their money. We will continue to prosecute people who commit crimes against consumers We urge anyone who is considering hiring a home contractor or any business to carefully check its business record by calling our office’s Consumer Protection hotline tollfree at 1-888-468-4454 and to also check with the Better Business Bureau.”

If you believe you have been a victim of an unfair and deceptive business practice, contact the Office of the Attorney General, Consumer Protection Bureau at 888-468-4454 or visit or visit the Bureau’s website at http://doj.nh.gov/consumer and fill out and return a consumer complaint form.