Rudy Corado and Marlon Dionicio Reports & Reviews

Rudy Corado and Marlon Dionicio Reports & Reviews (13)

• Sep 10, 2023

Type of a scam Worthless Problem-solving Service Scam

A Family of Scammers

Everyone! Look out for crude looking trucks with a bunch of white bags stacked on the bed of the truck/Loose and non secured tools! These a-holes are are a family of scammers working together to rip off communities across California and providing a landscaping service with a guaranteed year “warranty” (Any said warranty is non-existent and confirmed with neighbors) It started off with a young man coming to my door knocking offering services and claimed he was working with a crew and with other neighbors in the area with promises to fix my front lawn area. After he showed me the sample I was already hesitant to proceed, and I respectfully decline. While he was going to start gathering his things to go his boss, assuming it’s Rudy Corado and his brother, switched up attitude and basically came into my personal space to my face and basically begged for work. Told me it was a great deal for the “materials” and the “free labor”. Plus the “year warranty guarantee” is what he pitched to me as well. They were in my face and there was about 4 of them already. So due to their persistence I agreed. They said they start with 20 bags and it will be only $12 a bag no charge for labor or clean up. They claim to have you “watch” so you can see their “work”. Trust me, if you don’t watch what they do, you’ll come back to 80 bags later and them at your face expecting where the money is at. After it all and some arguing, I forked over 400 bucks to get them off my property. Anyone that sees this, do yourself a favor and call the police.
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These people don’t help anyone but themselves. FOUND THEM OFF FB for reference, first picture is his brother and him. It looked like they also had one of their daughters working with them. Didn’t get a picture though. I definitely remember those two faces on my property. I need everyone to keep a eye out for this [censored] family.

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• Jul 18, 2023

Almost got scammed!

Thanks to everyone who posted here about this scam. I was falling for it, but decided to check online first, just in case. The story is the same... they were in the neighborhood looking for potential customers and were happy to give me a demonstration using a small patch (one bag). They "would not charge labor, just materials" (red flag!) and today it would be a discount of $10/bag. After I saw the stories above, I sent them out. Scam was unsuccessful. Located at Stanford University residential area.

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Yard Scam!

Victim Location 94517
Total money lost $675
Type of a scam Home Improvement - Yard

It was late in the day on a Friday last month (July 2022) and this landscape crew was canvassing the neighborhood for home improvement projects. It had been a long week, i happened to be outside and was frankly a little tired. Crew approached, Marlon pointed out he could resolve the dead spots in my front lawn area. He proposed showing me a "test" on the smallest portion of my front year (15 by 30 feet). For $200, again, as above, $10 per "bag", he would show me what he was planning on doing. I agreed. However, instead of starting witht he 15 x 30 area, he moved to the otherside of the driveway to address the much larger "L" shaped portion of my yard. After spreading the initial 20 bags, barely scratching the area, he asked he he could proceed. Reluctantly, i said "yes" and before you know it, i agreed from the crew to finish the job they started ... 65 bags later (75 total). Along the way, he asked for my permission to proceed. I was hesitant but then he lowered his "bag" price to $9, stating "these bags cost me $7" (BS!) and $2 per bag doesn't even cover the work they were doing and had already done to mow my lawn, weedwhack the borders, pull existing weeds, etc.. When i went to have the boss write a check (wife!) she asked me what happended to the initial $200 "test" ... how did this get to now $675? I explained that 75 bags were used, etc.. That was the end of it for us ... however, Marlon did want to finish the job by addressing the 15 x 30 area as well. He was telling me $1,350 for the entire job! We declined. He then tried to push us for another $325, $1,000 total to complete. We said no thank you. They left me an invoice with watering instructions along with Marlon Dionicio phone #. I was told they'd be back in 3 weeks to mow the lawn and remedy any (my understanding) remaining bare spots where seed hadn't taken. 3 weeks went by. I wasn't hesitant to call because i really didn't want Marlon and his crew trying to "plus" sell me on finishing the 15 x 30 area. Plus, we were leaving town for vacation and didn't really want to interface with this crew BEFORE we left. So, now it's been almost 6 weeks ... and after reading the above, yes, it appears that i too was scammed! Based on the continuing drought, i simply should have refused from the get go ... as many of our neighbors have either installed artificial turf or simply let their front yards go, stopping the watering process altogether. I will say that about 65% of the area the "crew" seeded DOES now have very nice grass growing along with some new week growth! However, several bare spots reamain. I also have grass growing in the 15 X 30 "test" patch where the "crew" initially spread a "bag" or 2 in the beginning of the SCAM! Well, i certainly learned a lesson here ... and by watching the "crew", may have figured out how to gross some new grass on my own ... for myself, not scamming others in the process!

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He and his crew scammed me too. On 2/3/23 in Sacramento. They did exactly the same thing to me. I’m out $200 and only part on my yard was done when I asked for the full front yard.

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Mulch scam in Clovis, CA

On June 24, 2022 Rudy Corado did the same thing to me as above. He must have the script memorized. Very pushy, gave a demonstration, said he could fix the dead parts of my lawn. There were 3 of them. When I asked how much it would cost, he wouldn't answer me, said he would discount it and no charge for labor. When they were done, they said they used 232 bags of mulch and I owed them $1,856 dollars. When I was protesting, they started arguing with me. I was intimidated into writing a check for $1,800, but after checking with Nextdoor, I realized it was a scam & I was able to cancel the check. They came knocking on my door yesterday (6/29/22) and when I didn't answer, they called me. They told me I owed them money and when I said you aren't even licensed contractors, he said I owed him $500. I said "I don't owe you [censored] since you tried to rip me off, and don't bother me anymore. I am calling the police. He then said in a very threatening manner "I will see you soon, m...f...The Clovis Police said they were going to drive around to see if they could find him. He was driving a medium blue Silverado. He also pulled up several of my plants - hydrangeas (2) and peony bushes (4).

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I got scammed too! The guy was talking for fast and there was a crew of older men all at my yard. The guy told me I had dry patches on my lawn and he could fix it. I asked how much, and he would not tell me. He said he didn't know how many bags of dirt he would need ($10/bag). Within 10 minutes they spread 20 bags and said they needed to finish the rest. It covered such a small area because the bags were so small. He talked fast and acted like my best friend, like he was there to help. His partner started pulling weeds, don't know why other than to look like they were helpful and hard workers. At first I said yes to it thinking "why not let someone earn a living"...but before you knew it he said I owed him $850 and that was the discount rate. I kept saying that was way too much, way to expensive for the job but I was so intimidated by all the men standing outside on my front lawn that I pulled out my paycheck. I was scared not to pay and he was adamant that I owed him that. I did not sleep last night feeling like a stupid fool. Now I am afraid to open my door. :-(

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What area was this at , I’m wondering to be aware of this scam in my area

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This fertilizer scam crew is still at it. They spent Saturday 11.21.20 in Palo Alto, Calif., running pretty much the same racket that has been described by others here. Dumped dirt in two yards in our neighborhood with a promise of a lush lawn to come. There were plenty of red flags: No hard estimate. Couldn't provide a referral customer because they respect their customers' privacy. Offered to do a quick demo. A fee of $10 per bag of fertilizer. We'll start with 20 bags, they say, and then they'll know how much they'll need altogether.
That "altogether" estimate comes only after the project is hundreds of dollars over budget. The friendly crew chief becomes slightly surly and aggressive as the extent of the scam sinks in with the homeowner.
Two updates on what's been reported here already: The ring leader now goes by the name Nicholas (don't know if that's his real name or if he's using that name today or if there are several crews and crew leaders).
The scam operation as of 11.21.20 was answering the phone at 559-710-4442 (Fresno, Calif., area code). I suppose they'll change that number now.
The check for payment was made out to Marlon Dinicio and cashed almost immediately.
I've attached the business card that should have you running in the other direction.

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Same damn thing just happened to my mom on 07/14/20 in Jackson Ca. zipcode 95642. 3 guys showed up to her house. Of course she had some lawn not getting watered in one corner due to bad sprinklers which I had not had time to visit and fix. Of course she took the opportunity for them to fix the sprinklers. They fixed two sprinkler heads and then convinced her the lawn needed fertilizing, seeding, and mulch. They spread a bunch of lousy dirt on the lawn and were only there for less than an hour. They invoiced her $900 and all I have is a name; Marlon Dionicio and a phone number (559) 666-5550 which no one answers. This was a total scam! These guys need to be taken down. I could replace the whole lawn for $900.

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I had a similar experience as "bigfil" above. I was left w/ a receipt w/ Marlon Dionicio's name on it and his phone number. Shortly after they left my house I called the phone number on the receipt to get clarification regaring their watering instructions. Marlon answered right away. I spoke to him in Spanish and my questions regarding watering were answered. I was told that within 3 weeks my weeds wld be gone and that in place of the weeds I wld have a beautiful lawn. When it became clear that was NOT happening (2-1/2 weeks later, on 1-22-20) I began to call Marlon. He did not answer. I then began to leave him text messages in Spanish, again I received no response. I also left him a message in English from a different phone number (on 2-8-20), again I received no response. The phone number he left me is (559) 319-2082. The 559 area code suggest Marlon lives in Fresno. I believe all of us who have been duped by Marlon should call his phone number daily, if for no other reason as an irritant by the honest customers he and his associates have scamed.

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b

Pretty much same as above report.

Marlon Dionicio scammed me exactly as was shown..
On Thursday, 12/12/19 I was duped by 3 men who claimed to be landscapers working for a neighbor nearby. The first man, "Rudy," appeared at my door, said he noticed that my front yard was overgrown with weeds and offered his services to clean up and apply mulch for our lawn for weed suppression. I initially declined I do the gardening, and he offered to demonstrate in a small area of the garden how much better the mulch would look. A second guy appeared, identifying himself as "Edgar" and he said would sell me the mulch at $10 a bag and not charge for labor. When I asked for an estimate on how many bags I'd need for my front yard, he said he wouldn't know until he could see how everything looked after the demo. He however insisted the mulch we use likely cost us $1000, more expensive and inferior to the mulch he was selling.
Cashed the check as soon as they left my residence.
Contacted the Roseville Police department and they stated it was a civil matter even though this was obviously a scam.
Please do not fall prey to this...

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Hi Bigfil. Did you ever come up with an address for the business or for Marlon Dionicio? Needless to say, I haven't had any luck.

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- Los Altos, CA, USA

Scammer's phone 559-681-0040
Country United States
Victim Location CA 94024, USA
Total money lost $400
Type of a scam Home Improvement

On Sunday, 1/27/19 I was duped by two men who claimed to be landscapers working for a neighbor nearby. The first man, "Rudy," appeared at my door, said he noticed that my front yard was overgrown with poppies and offered his services to clean up and apply mulch for our garden for weed suppression. I initially declined as we have a gardener, and he offered to demonstrate in a small area of the garden how much better the mulch would look. A second guy appeared, identifying himself as "Edgar" and he said would sell me the mulch at $9 a bag and not charge for labor. When I asked for an estimate on how many bags I'd need for my front yard, he said he wouldn't know until he could see how everything looked after the demo. He however insisted the mulch we use likely cost us $300, more expensive and inferior to the mulch he was selling. I have actually signed up for wood chip delivery, and admittedly feeling sorry for them for working on a Sunday, I thought I could help them out and agreed to the demo.

Unfortunately, I was in my home and didn't see that another four men arrived and proceeded to "clean up" our native garden. They removed weeds and trimmed shrubs (poorly), saying that it was necessary to before applying the mulch. Rudy assured me the labor was free, they were only charging for the mulch at which point I asked again for an estimate. Again, Rudy refused to answer saying he didn't know yet. I know I should've asked them to leave then, but I think these guys knew to guilt me into feeling bad that they'd done all this work for me that I figured I would buy some mulch for their time. Well, in the end, they claimed to use 120 bags of mulch and attempted to charge me over $1000! Again, I only expected a "demo" and instead found that they'd proceeded to cover my entire bed with mulch. I insisted they take it back and Rudy refused, claiming his mulch is now contaminated with my soil. Edgar returned and attempted to gaslight me, insisting I misunderstood and denied that he said anything about his mulch being cheaper than our existing wood chips. They offered to take $700, then $550. They became very hostile and claimed I was cheating them as they now have to pay the laborers for their work. They claimed the $500 "discount" would make up for misunderstanding, when in fact there was no misunderstanding; they deliberately mislead me into agreeing to a demo that wasn't, and that I would control how many bags I would want and buy. They did not produce a contract (nor did I think I would need one as I assumed I was simply buying mulch) and I would've never agreed to their services and products had I known of the cost at the outset.

I refused to pay and they refused to leave until they were paid, insisting they now had to pay all the men who'd worked on my garden. I eventually I wrote them a check for $400 to leave as I was starting to feel threatened by the presence of 5 men glaring at me. When they finally left, they didn't bother to clean up the mess they made from my garden.

I've since learned that this is a scam (googled "fertilizer scam") and feel pretty foolish for falling victim to it. I do not believe this "business," Rudy nor Edgar have a license and have reported them to the CSLB. There was no license number on their trucks nor on the business card they gave me.

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