Attorney General Ellison shuts down asphalt fraudster

Brandon Michael Ferguson and Community Blacktop, LLC agree to dissolve company and pay $100K to State in restitution for victimized consumers

Ellison urges consumers who have been scammed by Ferguson and Blacktop to contact his office

February 11, 2025 (SAINT PAUL) — Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced today that his Office has reached a settlement that requires an asphalt company that victimized consumers to dissolve and pay $100,000 to the State of Minnesota that the Attorney General’s Office will use for restitution to victims. The Attorney General’s Office alleges Minnesota resident Brandon Michael Ferguson and his business, Community Blacktop, LLC (which also went by the names of C. Blacktop LLC, Community Construction, LLC, Frontier Construction, and MVP Valued Paving & Engineering) victimized consumers in Minnesota and across the country, targeting the elderly in particular, by promising quality asphalt work at a discount, but delivering subpar results and subsequently demanding outrageously inflated prices multiple times in excess of what was initially quoted.

Attorney General Ellison alleges that that, among Ferguson’s misrepresentations, Ferguson told consumers that he could give them a deal on asphalt work if they accepted that day because he had leftover asphalt from nearby projects. Sometimes, Ferguson would tell consumers that he had been working on a state highway nearby, even though the Minnesota Department of Transportation has no record of Ferguson or his companies engaging in such work.

The Attorney General’s Office also alleges that Ferguson quoted some customers a far lower price than he ended up trying to charge them. One Minnesotan in Little Falls was quoted between $2,000 and $3,000 to have their driveway tarred. Ferguson ended up handing them a bill for $17,000. Another customer was quoted $320 to have a small parking area added next to their driveway. Ferguson ended up paving their entire driveway and handed them an $8,000 bill.

In the consent judgment, Ferguson admits that he procured consent to perform work by fraud and violated a number of Minnesota’s consumer protection statutes.

The Attorney General’s Office worked with sheriff’s offices in Beltrami, Kanabec, Morrison, Stearns, and Todd Counties, local police departments in Hastings and Woodbury, and law enforcement in Wisconsin and Michigan to hold Ferguson and Community Blacktop accountable. Attorney General Ellison grateful for the support and work that all of these public servants do.

“No one should be the victim of these kinds of predatory and fraudulent business practices, particularly older Minnesotans,” Attorney General Ellison said. “Scammers often use what are called high-pressure sales tactics to help them cheat honest people. One of the most common of these tactics is creating a false sense of urgency to make people accept an offer before they can look into it. These incidents underscore how important it is to take your time, think, and do your research before making big purchases. Talk to your friends and family, look up online reviews, and compare prices. And, as always, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”

The consent judgment acknowledges that Ferguson’s recordkeeping, or lack of it, will make tracking down victims difficult. Attorney General Ellison called for impacted consumers to reach out. “We need people to reach out to us if they’ve been scammed by this business,” added Attorney General Ellison. “Check your files, let us know.”

Attorney General Ellison encourages Minnesotans to submit complaints about Mr. Ferguson and Community Blacktop, or any other scam, by filing a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office via its online complaint form. The Attorney General’s Office can also be reached by calling (651) 296-3353 from within the Twin Cities or (800) 657-3787 from Greater Minnesota.