Business owner arrested in Lee County on theft charge

LEESBURG — A business owner was arrested by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office on a theft charge Wednesday, officials with the agency said.

Investigator Matt Pearce with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said David Kehren, owner of Advantage Vinyl Siding and Roofing, was arrested at around 5 p.m. Wednesday following the execution of an active arrest warrant. He was charged with theft by conversion of payments for property improvements.

Pearce said the charge stems from the accusation that he was using funds to pay for previous jobs that he should have been using to pay for current ones.

In an email Pearce also said that Kehren accepted a check for $10,000 from the victim and cashed the check, but never completed the work.

“Basically, he was robbing Peter to pay Paul,” he said.

Pearce said Kehren was released early this afternoon on a $2,500 bond. He added that the case remains under investigation, and encouraged those victimized in a similar fashion to contact law enforcement.